Palestinians fear razing of villages in West Bank, as settlers circle their homes

An Israeli directive gives a green light for demolitions in Masafer Yatta, where residents keep watch at night for attackers in the darkness

Ali Awad is tired. The 27-year-old resident of Tuba, one of the dozen or so villages that make up Masafer Yatta in the arid south Hebron hills of the occupied West Bank, had been up all night watching as a masked Israeli settler on horseback circled his family home.

When we saw the masked settler, we knew he wanted violence," said Awad, his eyes bloodshot. They were lucky this time: the settler disappeared into the darkness before police could show up.