UN: Israeli settler violence against Palestinians in West Bank rising

Violence by Israeli settlers against Palestinian civilians in the West Bank continues to escalate, a report released on Tuesday by the UN Independent International Commission of Inquiry shows.

Last year, settlers killed at least seven Palestinians and injured 832 others, meaning that the number of victims has more than doubled compared to 2024, according to the report, which was presented to the UN Human Rights Council.

In July 2025, settlers - accompanied by Israeli soldiers - attacked Palestinians as they were tending their fields. One farmer was killed by a shot to the head, and another was beaten to death. "This trend continues in 2026 with attacks carried out daily," the UN stated.

According to the report, Israeli authorities enabled these attacks through financial and military support. Israel's judicial and law enforcement agencies, in turn, have granted impunity for settler violence for decades.

"The relentless, daily assaults by Israeli settlers against Palestinians are intolerable – and must end. Israel must stop supporting this violence and ensure that its security forces safeguard the Palestinian civilian population," said UN Commission Chair Srinivasan Muralidhar.

"The international community must exert concerted pressure on Israel to fulfil its obligations under international law and to take immediate decisive action to dismantle settlements and outposts, and end settler violence once and for all," he added.

Israel regularly dismisses criticism of settlers' actions against Palestinians in the West Bank as unfounded.

Since the unprecedented Hamas massacre in southern Israel on October 7, 2023, and the resulting Gaza war, violence by radical settlers against Palestinians and their property has increased significantly. Israeli media sometimes even refer to this as "Jewish terror."

The report also examines the Gaza Strip and the role of the Islamist Hamas militia there. The commission identified 249 cases of executions and severe physical violence in 2024 and 2025, resulting in at least 108 deaths and 384 injuries.

According to the report, forces affiliated with Hamas were involved in at least 60 of these incidents. These acts constituted war crimes such as murder and torture, as well as violations of human rights and humanitarian law, it said.

Under international law, the West Bank, like Gaza, is considered part of the territories occupied by Israel. Violence by settlers dates back to the 1970s. According to the UN, the number of incidents has risen sharply since 2023.

Today, more than 700,000 Israeli settlers live in the West Bank and East Jerusalem, surrounded by approximately 3 million Palestinians. The Palestinians claim these territories for their own state.

Israel's current administration has been working towards expanding Israeli settlements in the West Bank.