MIKHMAS(National Times)- Israeli settlers set fire to a mosque and graffitied its outside walls on Wednesday in the occupied West Bank village of Mikhmas, Palestinian sources and the Israeli military said.

Atta Kanaan, a Palestinian resident of Mikhmas who lives 50 metres from the mosque, told AFP that he heard the sound of breaking glass shortly after midnight on Wednesday and immediately went to the building.

“A fire was burning fiercely, and we called the fire brigade. Young men rushed to help us with fire extinguishers, and we managed to contain part of the fire before the flames engulfed the entire mosque,” he said.

Israel’s military told AFP that soldiers were dispatched to Mikhmas following a report of graffiti and arson at the mosque, as well as damage to a vehicle.

“No suspects were identified,” it said, adding an investigation had been opened.

AFP video footage showed that the fire had burned down the mosque’s interior carpeting and blackened the walls.

An AFP journalist reported that slogans were spraypainted in Hebrew on the exterior walls, including “just because we are quiet doesn’t mean we are asleep”.

Settlers also set fire to a car, Kanaan said, adding that in recent weeks villagers had formed night-watch patrols out of fear that settlers might torch homes, particularly those on the outskirts of the village.

Rouhi Fattouh, president of the Palestinian National Council, described the arson attack on the mosque as “a barbaric act and a dangerous escalation in settler terrorism”.