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The West Bank

Over the past year, Israel launched its most deadly strikes on the occupied West Bank in over 20 years. Between 7 October 2023 and 30 September 2024, 695 Palestinians were killed in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, in addition to two who died of wounds sustained prior to 7 October. These include 678 killed by Israeli forces, 12 by Israeli settlers, and seven where it remains unknown whether the perpetrators were Israeli forces or settlers.

Israel also intensified the use of its air force to target Palestinians and their property in the occupied West Bank, killing 146 Palestinians and injuring 54 in 55 air strikes. By contrast, six Palestinians were killed in air strikes in 2023 (up till October) and none in the preceding three years.

While the world focussed on events in Gaza, Israeli authorities demolished, destroyed, confiscated, or forced the demolition of 1,768 Palestinian structures across the occupied West Bank, displacing more than 4,555 Palestinians, including about 1,910 children between 7 October 2023 and 30 September 2024.

According to a report by Human Rights Watch (HRW), occupation forces have been supporting violent settler attacks on Palestinians. Between 7 October 2023 and 30 September 2024, OCHA documented about 1,423 attacks by Israeli settlers against Palestinians, of which 140 led to Palestinian casualties, 1,135 led to damage to Palestinian property, and 148 led to both casualties and property damage. Since 7 October 2023, 277 Palestinians households comprising 1,628 people, including 794 children, have been displaced in Bedouin and herding communities across the West Bank, primarily citing attacks by Israeli settlers and impeded access to grazing lands by settlers.

Israeli newspaper Haaretz reported that Israeli occupation forces have been sexually assaulting Palestinian women at checkpoints in the occupied West Bank. One lady reported having a soldier expose himself to her and say: ‘Do you want it? Come and see.”

In spite of the increasing settler attacks, few settlers are held accountable for their offensive. On 9 September, Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich said that he is working to grant 500,000 illegal settlers in the occupied West Bank ‘the same rights of every citizen in Israel.’ He added: ‘My life’s mission is to build the Land of Israel and thwart the establishment of a Palestinian state that would endanger the State of Israel.’ This came weeks after Israel announced it would allocate two million shekels ($545,000) to finance illegal settler incursions at Al-Aqsa Mosque in occupied East Jerusalem. This will be the first time that such incursions have been backed financially by the settler-colonial state.

According to the Colonisation and Wall Resistance Commission, since the start of the year to July Israeli occupation authorities had made four announcements converting private Palestinian lands into state lands, thereby prohibiting Palestinian citizens from accessing, cultivating or reclaiming them, the Commission noted.

In June, Israel declared it was going to legalise five outposts in the West Bank, establish three new settlements, and seize huge swathes of land where Palestinians seek to create an independent state.

Concept, research and text: Sara Khalil

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