Dozens of armed Jewish settlers have attacked the only medical clinic in al-Mawasi west of the southern Gaza Strip town of Khan Younis, Palestinian residents said Wednesday.

The armed settlers broke into the clinic Tuesday night, destroyed medical equipment and the only ambulance parked outside, said the residents.

They added that the settlers had been occupying the clinic since Monday and prevented the residents and patients from reaching it.

Al-Mawasi is a small Palestinian territory surrounded by Jewish settlements. Most of its residents are farmers who are obliged by the Israeli army to obtain special permits to enter their neighborhood. The clinic offers medical aids to the residents of the area.

The Palestinian Interior Ministry said in a statement that the settlers also seized a building used by the farmers as a sport club and occupied the roof of one of the resident's houses in the area.

The statement blamed that Israeli naval forces patrolling nearby ignored and did nothing to prevent the attacks.

The ministry cautioned the residents to be careful since the settlers have increased their attacks on them and their properties as the planned Israeli pullout is looming.

Under the disengagement plan, Israel is expected to withdraw 21 Jewish settlements and four smaller ones in northern West Bank in mid-August, but has met strong opposition from some extreme Jewish settlers.

Source: Xinhua