Settlers are targeted by Palestinian armed groups who , according to Human Rights Watch , say that settlers are a legitimate target because they have forfeited their civilian status by residing in settlements that are illegal under international humanitarian law . Both Human Rights Watch and B'tselem rejected this argument on the basis that the legal status of the settlements has no effect on the civilian status of their residents . Human Rights Watch said the " prohibition against intentional attacks against civilians is absolute " . B'tselem said " The settlers constitute a distinctly civilian population , which is entitled to all the protections granted civilians by international law . The Israeli security forces ' use of land in the settlements or the membership of some settlers in the Israeli security forces does not affect the status of the other residents living among them , and certainly does not make them proper targets of attack . " Fatal attacks on settlers have included firing of rockets and mortars and drive-by shootings , also targeting infants and children . Violent incidents include the murder of Shalhevet Pass , a ten-month-old baby shot by a Palestinian sniper in Hebron , and the murder of two teenagers by unknown perpetrators on 8 May 2001 , whose bodies were hidden in a cave near Tekoa , a crime that Israeli authorities suggest may have been committed by Palestinian terrorists . In the Bat Ayin axe attack , children in Bat Ayin were attacked by a Palestinian wielding an axe and a knife . A 13-year-old boy was killed and another was seriously wounded . Rabbi Meir Hai , a father of seven , was killed in a drive-by shooting . In August 2011 , five members of one family were killed in their beds . The victims were the father Ehud ( Udi ) Fogel , the mother Ruth Fogel , and three of their six children — Yoav , 11 , Elad , 4 , and Hadas , the youngest , a three-month-old infant . According to David Ha'ivri , and as reported by multiple sources , the infant was decapitated
Bat Ayin axe attack
Bat Ayin axe attack
Israeli settlement