ISLAMABAD: Israeli settlers carried out at least 264 attacks against Palestinians in the occupied West Bank during October, marking the biggest monthly total since United Nations officials began tracking such incidents in 2006, the UN said.
In a statement warning against the sharp rise in violence, the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs said the attacks, which resulted in casualties and property damage, amounted to an average of eight incidents per day.
“Since 2006, OCHA has documented over 9,600 such attacks. About 1,500 of them took place just this year, roughly 15 per cent of the total,” the UN body said in a statement.
According to Reuters, home to 2.7 million Palestinians, the West Bank has long been at the heart of plans for a future Palestinian state existing alongside Israel, but successive Israeli governments have expanded settlements rapidly, fragmenting the land.
The United Nations, Palestinians and most countries regard settlements as illegal under international law. Israel disputes this. Over half a million Israeli settlers live in the West Bank.
The violence — coinciding with the olive harvest season — included assaults, property damage, and the destruction of olive trees. OCHA said the wave of attacks reflects a steady escalation of settler violence this year, with over 1,500 incidents recorded so far in 2025, undermining Palestinian livelihoods and heightening tensions across the West Bank.
The United Nations and various human rights organizations attribute the sharp increase in Israeli settler violence to several interconnected causes:
Lack of accountability: Israeli settlers often face little to no legal consequences, encouraging further attacks.
Settlement expansion: The spread of new outposts and land grabs has deepened tensions as settlers encroach on Palestinian farmland.
Political encouragement: The presence of far-right figures in Israel’s ruling coalition — who back settlement activity — has emboldened extremist groups.
Seasonal friction: Violence typically peaks during the olive harvest, when Palestinians enter areas close to settlements.
Wider conflict: The Gaza war and broader regional unrest have intensified settler militancy and retaliatory violence across the West Bank.
Together, these factors have made 2025 one of the most violent years for Palestinians in the occupied territory since records began.
