Palestinian Death Toll in West Bank Recorded Higher Since the Gaza Conflict Broke Out in 2023

Attack on a mosque in the West Bank. (Source: WAFA)

JAKARTA - The number of Palestinian victims of Israeli forces and settlers in the West Bank since the latest conflict in the Gaza Strip broke out in 2023 is more than the previous 17 years, according to Oxfam.

In its report published Wednesday, the charity analyzed UN data from the occupied Palestinian territories, finding that 1,036 Palestinians, including 225 children, were killed by Israeli forces or settlers in attacks between 2006 and 2022.

For comparison, 1,244 Palestinians, including 268 children, were killed between 2023 and last year, reported The National (11/6).

The figures show more than one in five people killed over the past two decades were children.

Violence by Israeli settlers and the military in the West Bank has escalated since an October 7, 2023 attack on southern Israel by the Palestinian militant group Hamas.

Israel's two-year war in Gaza has been described as a campaign of genocide by UN and human rights experts.

Meanwhile in the West Bank, Israel has carried out deadly attacks, systematically destroying refugee camps, forcibly relocating tens of thousands of Palestinian families, arming and encouraging settlers, and imposing unprecedented restrictions on the movement of Palestinians.

The increase in Israeli military operations and the increased violence by settlers against Palestinians has sparked accusations of ethnic cleansing from Oxfam and other human rights groups.

"The increase in the killing of civilians in the West Bank is tragic and horrific," said Bushra Khalidi, a humanitarian policy specialist at Oxfam.

"While the eyes of the world are on Gaza, attacks in the West Bank are increasing," he continued.

According to an Oxfam report, nearly 46,000 Palestinians have been forced to flee the West Bank over the past three years - compared to more than 13,000 over the previous 14 years - as a result of Israeli military operations, settler violence, demolitions, and access restrictions.

Bedouin and herder communities have also been affected. At least 5,900 Palestinians from these groups have been forced to flee, according to UN data.

Oxfam found that West Bank residents have also experienced repeated demolitions and destruction, not only of their homes but also of vital infrastructure, including water mains.

Oxfam added that there are now a record 925 permanent or periodic obstacles restricting the movement of three million Palestinians throughout the West Bank, including East Jerusalem. This is 43 percent more than the average annual 647 movement obstacles in the previous 20 years, said Oxfam.

Despite the "ongoing ethnic cleansing in the West Bank", Oxfam said it continued to support vulnerable communities across the West Bank with humanitarian aid.

The charity called for "an end to Israel's illegal occupation and further annexation of the West Bank, including East Jerusalem".