By Elham Asaad Buaras
London, (The Muslim News): Israeli settlers have established a new illegal outpost on Palestinian land east of occupied East Jerusalem, a local human rights group reported Sunday, describing it as part of a “systematic policy to seize Palestinian land” in violation of international law.
The Bedouin rights group Al-Baidar says settlers are installing temporary structures and foundations for makeshift homes near the Bedouin communities of Abu Ghaliya and Al-Ara’ara in Anata. The group warns the outpost may displace local Bedouin residents and block Palestinian access to key agricultural and grazing land.
Illegal settlement construction has surged. The Palestinian Authority’s Colonisation and Wall Resistance Commission reports that settlers have built 114 outposts since the Gaza war began in October 2023. They continue construction despite the International Court of Justice ruling last July, which declared Israel’s occupation illegal and demanded the evacuation of all settlements.
Israeli forces escalated security operations across the West Bank on Sunday, detaining 12 Palestinians in coordinated military raids. The official Palestinian news agency Wafa reported arrests in Hebron and Bethlehem, with additional detentions in Ramallah, Nablus, and Qalqilya. Advocacy groups confirm that Israel currently holds more than 9,100 Palestinians in detention, following over 20,000 arrests since October 2023.
Illegal settlers, backed by Israeli forces, continued attacks on Palestinian civilians and agricultural workers. In Beit Duqqu, northwest of Jerusalem, they assaulted land reclamation workers and olive pickers, vandalised agricultural machinery, and seized computers. Following the attacks, Israeli forces banned olive harvesting and land reclamation in the area. These assaults, timed during the critical harvest season, devastate a primary source of Palestinian income.
The human cost of the conflict remains stark. Palestinian health authorities report that 1,069 Palestinians have been killed and more than 10,300 injured in the West Bank since October.
In a separate incident on Sunday evening, a 21-year-old Palestinian man was shot and wounded by Israeli forces in the al-Barid neighbourhood of al-Ram, north of Jerusalem, while allegedly attempting to cross the separation wall. The Palestinian Red Crescent Society said he sustained gunshot wounds to the chest and shoulder.
The Palestinian Commission of Detainees’ Affairs has condemned conditions for Palestinian prisoners as “catastrophic.” A lawyer visiting the Gilad camp in Israel’s Ofer military prison reported that 100 to 120 detainees are crammed into 12 rooms under harsh conditions.
Prisoners are routinely shackled and blindfolded and subjected to punitive measures, including solitary confinement, beatings, and electric shocks. The lawyer described severe shortages of clothing and hygiene supplies, with inmates forced to wear the same clothes for months and to shower with cold water using dishwashing liquid. Meals consist largely of bread and yoghurt, and prisoners sleep on thin mattresses with inadequate blankets amid freezing conditions.
These reports from the West Bank come as a dispute over humanitarian aid to Gaza intensifies. The White House claims that nearly 15,000 trucks carrying commercial and humanitarian goods have entered Gaza since October 10, with a spokesperson insisting the US is leading a “historic effort” to address critical needs.
Aid agencies and Palestinian officials dispute these figures. The World Food Programme says only half the needed food aid reaches Gaza, while Palestinian relief groups put deliveries at just a quarter of the amount agreed under the recent ceasefire. Gaza’s Government Media Office said the supplies “fall far below the minimum humanitarian threshold,” calling for at least 600 trucks daily to meet essential needs.
[Photo: Palestinians try to light their surroundings with fire as they endure ongoing electricity outages caused by Israel’s attacks on the Gaza Strip since October 7, 2023, continuing their daily lives under difficult conditions in the dark streets and ruins of Gaza City on November 9, 2025. Photojournalist: Anas Zeyad Fteha/AA]
