Israel’s Katz threatens ‘full-scale war’ against PA after settler stabbed

Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz has threatened a “full-scale war” against the Palestinian Authority (PA) after a settler was stabbed in the occupied West Bank.

Israeli forces killed the suspect, a Palestinian man, soon after the attack, in which the 19-year-old settler was critically injured, Israeli Army Radio reported on Monday. The incident took place at an illegal settlement near the village of Usarin in the Nablus governorate.

The suspect fled the scene in a vehicle, with Israeli soldiers launching a search operation. They later said the suspect was killed after he allegedly tried to stab soldiers.

Several Palestinian villages were in lockdown after the incident, Al Jazeera correspondent Laith Jaar reported.

Israel’s Channel 12 reported that the settler suffered several stab wounds and was taken to hospital in a helicopter. His condition was said to be serious.

Reacting to the incident, Katz said, “If … the Palestinian Authority’s security mechanisms and related bodies initiate, or we know with certainty that they are about to initiate, a terror attack in the style of October 7 against [Israeli] forces and Jewish settlements — Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and I have instructed the [military] to prepare for the opening of a full-scale war.”

The stabbing follows a wave of pogroms against Palestinians in the occupied West Bank by Israeli settlers.

Israeli military officials had warned that settler violence in the occupied West Bank could lead to wider unrest.