In the heart of the occupied West Bank lies Taybeh, a small town with deep Christian roots and a resilient spirit. But today, this historic stronghold of faith is under threat—not from ancient empires or natural disasters, but from increasing violence by Israeli settlers. As fires rage near holy sites and residents face daily harassment, Taybeh’s Christian and Palestinian communities are sounding the alarm. Here's a closer look at the escalating crisis that’s putting one of Christianity’s last strongholds in the region at risk.
TAYBEH, West Bank — The white stone ruins of the fifth-century Church of St. George Al Khidr in Taybeh are a powerful reminder of the Christian faith’s enduring presence in the region. For centuries, this small town—now the last majority-Christian community in the West Bank—has weathered the test of time.
But today, Taybeh's Christian residents face a growing modern-day threat: violent harassment by Jewish settlers. Rights groups and church leaders say the goal is to push out Palestinians of all faiths while the Israeli government often turns a blind eye.
Earlier this week, scorched earth surrounded the ancient church, the aftermath of fires that had recently swept through olive groves and a nearby cemetery. Town officials believe these fires were deliberately set by Israeli settlers during an arson attack on July 7. NBC News reached out to the Israel Defense Forces and Israeli police for comment, but received no response.
"The settlers feel that everything belongs to them,” said Pierbattista Pizzaballa, the Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem. “Unfortunately, it seems the [Israeli] government is silent, if not supporting them. So they feel free to behave as they want.”
Though the recent attacks didn’t cause injuries, they are part of a broader, escalating pattern of settler violence. Few perpetrators are ever prosecuted. While the Israeli government has stated that civilian violence is unacceptable, human rights organizations argue that enforcement is severely lacking.
In fact, settler attacks have reached alarming levels. The United Nations recorded over 700 incidents in just the first half of this year—more than three times the 216 incidents documented in all of 2023. The violence has surged since the October 7 Hamas attacks, and even before that, following the rise of Israel’s most right-wing government to date in late 2022.
“Since this government was formed, ministers have said things like, ‘Don’t apply the law to settlers,’” said Nadav Weiman, executive director of the Israeli organization “Breaking the Silence.” He noted that many settlers now act with such impunity that they no longer bother hiding their faces in videos from the West Bank.
On July 12, that impunity turned deadly. Settlers allegedly beat to death 20-year-old American Sayfollah Musallet in the village of Sinjil while he was visiting family. Another Palestinian, 23-year-old Mohammed al-Shalabi, was also killed.
The deaths drew rare criticism from U.S. Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee, a vocal supporter of the settler movement. On X (formerly Twitter), Huckabee called the incident a “criminal and terrorist act” and demanded a thorough investigation.
The Israel Defense Forces said they were investigating and that suspects from “both sides” were detained at the scene. The investigation remains ongoing, according to the IDF, though Israeli police did not comment further.
Justice in these cases is rare. A 2023 report from Israeli rights group Yesh Din revealed that more than 93% of investigations into settler violence from 2005 to 2023 ended without an indictment. Only 3% led to convictions.
Eyewitness videos often show young male settlers—known in Israel as the “Hilltop Youth”—at the center of the violence. Though they may appear disorganized, Palestinian observers warn that these youths are part of a broader strategy to make a future Palestinian state unviable by systematically seizing and destabilizing land.
The U.S. Treasury Department echoed this view in October when it designated the Hilltop Youth a violent extremist group, citing their use of “killings, arson, assaults, and intimidation intended to drive Palestinian communities out of the West Bank.”
These settlers aren’t just attacking people—they’re also targeting livelihoods. In Taybeh, settlers have taken to grazing livestock in Palestinian fields. Church leaders showed NBC News videos of settlers herding cows into town, where they fed on olive trees belonging to local farmers.
Rights groups including Amnesty International, Peace Now, B’Tselem, and Kerem Navot believe this strategy aims to ruin Palestinian agriculture and provoke confrontation—creating excuses for further violence. Ultimately, they say, it’s all designed to force Palestinians out.
Local residents are already feeling the pressure. Girgis Awad, a chicken farmer, said he was recently the target of an attempted carjacking by heavily armed settlers while driving home from work.
“We’re constantly exposed to situations that disrupt our lives,” Awad said. He added that settlers often block residents from accessing their farmland, preventing them from feeding livestock or transporting goods.
Christianity remains deeply rooted in Taybeh. The town is home to Greek Orthodox, Latin, and Melkite Greek Catholic churches. Shrines and steeples line the hilltop streets overlooking vast olive groves. Taybeh is also home to the Taybeh Brewing Company, one of the few beer producers in the Muslim-majority West Bank.
Still, Taybeh’s Christian minority faces increasing danger. Since the founding of Israel in 1948, the number of Christian Palestinians in the region has dwindled from around 10% of the population to less than 1%, as many have emigrated.
But priests in Taybeh say settlers aren’t targeting them for their religion—they’re targeting all Palestinians, Christian or Muslim alike.
“They don’t differentiate between Muslims or Christians,” said Rev. David Khoury, leader of the town’s Greek Orthodox Church. “The settlers treat us all the same.”
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