A Palestinian man has been killed and others seriously injured in separate settler attacks in the occupied West Bank.
Locals say that in the past day, several new outposts – clusters of settler homes unauthorized by the government – have been set up in areas where the Palestinian Authority is meant to have full control.
Settler violence has continued to surge in the West Bank since the start of the US-Israeli war on Iran at the end of February. Mohammad al-Malhi was the seventh Palestinian killed during this period.
His family said he was shot in the head by settlers who had erected an outpost on their land near Bethlehem. Malhi's family stated that Israeli soldiers had come to dismantle the outpost – but that after the army left, settlers returned to rebuild it, which is when the shooting took place.
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) reported that during a clash between settlers and Palestinians, an Israeli civilian opened fire, resulting in one death and several injuries.
Footage circulating online depicts another settler assault that left a 75-year-old man bloodied during an attack on his home in Tayasir during a settler raid.
This surge in violence follows a pattern seen during the Gaza war, after Hamas-led attacks on Israel in October 2023, complemented by rapid settlement construction endorsed by the Israeli government.
Last year saw unprecedented expansion in settlements and planning approvals by the Israeli government, despite all settlements being considered illegal under international law. While some outposts have been dismantled, reports indicate that the security cabinet has legalised 30 outposts retroactively throughout the West Bank this week.
Since the occupation began in 1967, Israel has established approximately 160 settlements housing around 700,000 Jewish residents in the West Bank and East Jerusalem, areas that Palestinians claim for a future state. There are about 3.3 million Palestinians living in proximity to these settlements.
