Israel probes into "terror" torching attack on Palestinian homes

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu ordered on Friday morning a swift probe into a suspected Jewish arson attack, which killed a Palestinian toddler and critically wounded at least three others in the northern West Bank overnight.

"I have ordered the security forces to use all means at their disposal to apprehend the murderers and bring them to justice forthwith," Netanyahu said in a statement, adding the attack was an "act of terrorism in every respect."

Ali Saad Dawabsha, one-and-a-half year old, died shortly after sustaining serious burns. His mother and father, Riham and Saad, and their son Ahmad were also critically wounded, a military spokesperson told Xinhua, adding that they were evacuated to Israeli hospitals. Their home, in the Duma village near Nablus city, was burned to the ground.

The spokesperson said that a preliminary investigation suggests that suspects entered the village in the early hours of the day, setting ablaze two homes and sprayed graffiti reading "revenge" and "long live the Messiah" in Hebrew on the houses.

Eyewitnesses told the Palestinian Ma'an news agency that they saw four settlers smashing windows of the homes before throwing flammable liquids and Molotov cocktails inside. The villagers tried to chase them but they fled towards the nearby Ma'aleh Efraim settlement.

The Duma village, with a population of some 2,500, lies within the so-called Area C where Israel is in full control.

Nabil Abu Rdainah, a spokesman for Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, said Israel is responsible for the incident. "Such a crime would not have occurred if the Israeli government did not insist on pursuing settlements and protecting settlers," he said in a statement on WAFA, the official Palestinian news agency.

Police's Nationalist Crime Unit launched an investigation into the attack, suspecting the torching was a "Price Tag" attack, a police spokeswoman said.

"Price Tags" are attacks perpetrated by far-right Jews in order to exact retribution for any Israeli government move to curb the expansion of the Jewish settlements. It includes vandalism and torching of Palestinians' property and holy sites, including mosques, Christian churches and cemeteries.

Israel razed Wednesday two buildings in the settlement of Beit El, after the Supreme Court ordered its destruction because they were built on private Palestinian land. The move sparked a fierce protest.

Israel vowed to crack down on "Price Tag" perpetrators but suspects are rarely apprehended and indicted. On Wednesday, the Israeli prosecution indicted two suspects in last month's torching of the Loaves and Fish Church on the Sea of Galilee. This was the first time Israelis were indicted for attacking a church or a mosque.

Israel occupied the West Bank in the 1967 Mideast war and has controlled it ever since.

The settlements are built on lands the Palestinians see as their future state, and are considered illegal under international law. Endit