'All you have to do is burn': Hamas calls to set fires in Jerusalem, West Bank
"Youth of the West Bank, youth of Jerusalem, and those inside Israel, set their cars ablaze... Gaza awaits the revenge of the free," the terrorist organization wrote.
Hamas posted a message encouraging Palestinians to "burn whatever you can of groves, forests, and settler homes," on Telegram on Wednesday.
"Youth of the West Bank, youth of Jerusalem, and those inside Israel, set their cars ablaze... Gaza awaits the revenge of the free," the terrorist organization wrote.
Earlier, the Jenin News Network Telegram channel called on Palestinians to "burn the groves near the settlements" in a post on Telegram on Wednesday.
As the wildfires continue to burn across central Israel, the channel posted a photo of a masked person setting fire to a field as a town burns in the background, with the text "Settlers' homes will be ashes under the feet of the revolutionaries" and the hashtag "Burn settlers' houses."
The wildfires broke out in the Judean Hills on Wednesday morning and spread across the Jerusalem area as the day continued.
Firefighters try to extinguish a fire which broke out near Moshav Mesilat Zion, April 30, 2025. (photo credit: NOAM REVKIN FENTON / FLASH 90)
“O, youth of the West Bank,” called one inciting video. “Let us be the flame of freedom which will not die. Let us make their night - a burning day. Let us bring back to them the nightmares of the occupation, so they know that every day is a struggle for the resistance. Set fires of freedom everywhere. We will not give in and will not give up until we burn every piece of stolen land.”
On social media, the fires were also branded as “Flames of the Flood,” echoing Hamas’s name for the October 7th massacre, “Flood of Al-Aqsa”.
Palestinian news channel “Akhbar Filastin” tweeted on their X account (112 thousand followers): “A call to the revolutionary youth and all the heroes of the West Bank.. Settlers' homes and the surrounding areas are your target. Burn them with your Molotov cocktails and set fire to the grass near the settlement outposts.”
🟢دعوة للشباب الثائر ولكل أبطال الضفة الغربية..
بيوت المستوطنين والمناطق المحيطة بها هدف لكم، أحرقوها بقنابلكم الحارقة وأشعلوا النار بالأعشاب القريبة من البؤر الاستيطانية.#أحرِق_بيوت_المستوطنين
— شبكة أخبار فلسطين (@24NEWSPS) April 30, 2025
While the Telegram channel Jenin News (320 thousand followers) wrote: “Calls from youth to burn forests close to the raped (lands)... The (Zionist) entity is Burning! This is an opportunity for you, to increase the fires, youth of Jerusalem and the occupied interior, raise your spirits and make up your mind, their settlements, set them ablaze.”
Notedly, many Palestinian outlets refer to all Israelis as “settlers” and all cities and towns in the country as “settlements.”
Other Posters shared on these channels included calls to “exploit the heat of the summer and set fire to the forests of the settlers. There will be not one settler left in our land.” while others called: “let’s burn their settlements and make them a living hell for them… Don't underestimate what you have and what you can do.”
Earlier today Channel 2 also reported arson attempts in the Jerusalem hills.
Another poster promoted the slogan “Let the houses of the settlers become ash under the feet of the revolutionaries,” alongside the hashtag “Burn the Settlers’ Houses”
One channel posted a picture of the raging fires, adding: “For Gaza, which has never held back in its support for you: Go down there now and burn the forests and groves near the settlements!”
Another channel from the Jenin refugee camp uploaded posters showing the Israeli flag burning along with calls to “set fire to the forests of the occupation and its settlements… kudos to our youth, go and burn, go and burn”
Some channels even cursed at the Palestinian Authority for offering Israel to help with “the fires of the settlers near the settlements of Al-Quds,” also adding: “heroes of the West Bank and Jerusalem - this is your day. Exploit these fires and make them grow larger. Gasoline and a spark can make the entity a fiery hell. The settlements and their forests are your targets.”
Fire and Rescue Commissioner, Eyal Caspi, announced the authority's alert level has been raised to the highest level.
An appeal has been made by Foreign Minister Gideon Sa'ar for international assistance from neighboring countries Greece, Croatia, Italy, Cyprus and Bulgaria, though assistance is not currently expected to arrive before nightfall.
-*All Independence Day events cancelled*-
Independence Day performances and activities have been canceled across the country due to the fires, the government announced.
The meteorological service put out reports as early as yesterday that this was a possibility. The Israel Fire and Rescue Authority recently requested many cancellations due to the fact that they would not be able to secure certain locations in case a fire were to break out.