The stone-domed home of the Masallam family in Khirbet al-Marajim, West Bank, still bears dents on its metal door from an axe attack by Israeli settlers. Inside, the smell of freshly made cheese mingles with the cozy atmosphere where four generations gather together.
The Masallam family is one of only two households living year-round in Khirbet al-Marajim, a sparsely populated hamlet about one kilometer southwest of the Palestinian town of Duma. This once peaceful land was where farmers grazed livestock and cultivated the gentle hills.
However, life changed when Israeli settlers arrived. Hajja Latifa, 66, recalled: “In the old days, the world was safe. We could walk home at 10-11 at night without fear, even sleep outside under the stars. But not now.”
The first tragedy struck in 2016 when Musa, Hajja Latifa’s husband, was struck by an Israeli settler’s car while riding his donkey home. Though the family filed a complaint, the settler was never prosecuted. Since then, the army and settlers have banned the family from the hill area where Musa was injured.
On the night of March 14, 2025, about 30 armed settlers attacked the family’s compound. They threw stones, smashed windows, set fire to a car and a house. In the chaos, two infants—18 months and 6 months old—were kidnapped from their room. Fortunately, men from Duma chased and rescued the children. The attack lasted nearly 20 minutes, and the Israeli army—though already at the scene—arrived only half an hour later. According to the family, soldiers even punched a 14-year-old female family member in the face as they tried to enter the house.
Thabet, 24, seen as the family’s spiritual pillar, said: “If we leave, they will control the pasture. That’s why they focus their attacks on this house. They want the whole area—and if we fall, others will fall too.”
Daily life for the Masallam family is a series of losses. Settlers’ cattle constantly encroach on their land, destroying 450 olive trees—which once yielded 1,000 liters of oil annually, now only 10 liters. They have been unable to harvest wheat for three years. Feed costs have skyrocketed from 15,000 shekels (about $5,000) to 75,000 shekels ($25,000).
Thabet explained: “The settlers destroy you bit by bit. When you have no income, you get poorer, you don’t want to keep sheep anymore. You sell the sheep, then you have nothing left in Marajim, you want to leave. And they take the land.”
The family faces daily encounters with their tormentor. In February 2026, a bearded settler, accompanied by soldiers in uniform, came and declared the family’s car illegal. They tied up Muhammad, beat him, even pressed a gun to his head. Then they completely destroyed the car.
Yet the Masallam family’s spirit remains unbroken. The women sing folk songs while milking and making cheese in the yard. At night, siblings dance together while brushing their teeth. Thabet said: “Laughter and joy come to us naturally.”
The Masallam family’s resilience is testament to the Palestinian struggle for land in the West Bank, where, according to the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), from the start of 2023 to April 2026, at least 5,879 Palestinians from 116 communities have been forcibly displaced, with 45 communities completely erased.
