UN Officials Warn Security Council of Rising Israeli Settler Attacks in West Bank

Israeli settlements in the West Bank. (Wikimedia Commons/Trocaire)

JAKARTA - A senior United Nations official on Tuesday expressed concern over the "rapidly deteriorating" situation in the occupied West Bank, condemning the increase in violence, especially by Israeli settlers against Palestinians.

"In the past week, the increase in violence in the West Bank has resulted in civilian casualties, displacement, property damage, and increased insecurity throughout the affected communities," Ramiz Alakbarov, the UN's special representative for the Middle East peace process, told the Security Council, launching Al Arabiya from AFP (29/7).

"Israeli settler attacks against Palestinian communities, homes, places of worship, and civilian infrastructure continue at an alarming rate," he said.

Violence has flared in the West Bank since Hamas's offensive in Israel on October 7, 2023, with near-daily attacks by Israeli settlers and routine raids on Palestinian villages.

Last Friday, deadly clashes occurred between Israeli settlers and Palestinians in the village of Tell, killing four Palestinians and two Israelis.

The Israeli military then stormed Nablus and several surrounding towns, announcing the arrest of dozens of Palestinians as it launched what it called a "counter-terrorism" operation in the West Bank.

On Sunday night, Palestinian officials said Israeli settlers burned two mosques in the occupied West Bank.

Alakbarov urged the Israeli government "to take immediate and effective action to prevent settler violence, protect Palestinian communities, and ensure that all perpetrators are held accountable."

He also condemned Palestinian attacks on Israelis and called on Palestinians to "resolutely reject violence."

The "rapidly deteriorating" situation in the West Bank "complicates the already alarming conditions in the rest of the occupied Palestinian territory, with the possibility of a wider escalation increasing unless immediate steps are taken to reverse the situation," he said.