Mother of Palestinian Toddler Burnt to Death in West Bank Settler Attack Declared Dead

Eighteen-month-old Ali Al Dawabshen with his parents. Ali was burned to death in a settler attack on his West Bank home. His father died last week. His mother died last night. Both his parents and four-year-old brother were injured in the fire which killed him. Photograph shared by @LinahAlsaafin on Twitter

Eighteen-month-old Ali Al Dawabsheh with his parents. Ali was burned to death in a settler attack on his home in Duma, in the West Bank, on July 31. His father died on August 8. His mother died earlier today. Both his parents and four-year-old brother were injured in the fire which killed him. Photograph shared by @LinahAlsaafin on Twitter

The mother of a Palestinian baby burned to death in an Israeli settler arson attack on her home in Duma village in the occupied West Bank died earlier today. Her death sparked anger and outrage as Palestinians grapple with the loss of the third member of the same family while the culprits are free.

Eighteen-month-old Ali Dawabsheh was instantly killed and his parents and four-year-old brother were injured, with up to 75 per cent of their bodies burned, according to medics in neighboring Nablus, who spoke to Al Jazeera, when the attack took place on July 31.

Their home was torched along with a neighbor's house by a group of settlers who left graffiti reading “revenge” and “long live Messiah” on the burned out walls. A local resident, Mesalem Daoubasah, told Haaretz Israeli newspaper that he saw four settlers fleeing the scene with several local residents following them in pursuit. According to Daoubasah, the settlers fled toward the nearby settlement of Ma'aleh Ephraim.

Riham, a teacher who just turned 27, is survived by her son, Ahmed, who is said to be in stable condition. His father Saad, aged 32, died on August 8.

Gaza Writes Back explains:

From Gaza, Dr Bilal Dabour adds:

Israeli journalist Mairav Zonszein points out that no suspects were charged with the crime:

And Palestinian Lina Alsaafin notes:

Riham was laid to rest in Duma, in a grave next to her husband and son. Here are some photographs of her students mourning her death, shared on Twitter by Gaza Writes Back:

Start the conversation

Authors, please log in »

Guidelines

  • All comments are reviewed by a moderator. Do not submit your comment more than once or it may be identified as spam.
  • Please treat others with respect. Comments containing hate speech, obscenity, and personal attacks will not be approved.