Elham Asaad Buaras
The Israeli military is complicit in scores of attacks perpetrated by illegal Jewish settlers in the Occupied West Bank since October 7, 2023, according to an investigation conducted by Human Rights Watch.
In its report titled “West Bank: Israel Responsible for Rising Settler Violence,” HRW documented more than 700 attacks spanning the West Bank region. The attacks included the forced displacement of 20 communities, including entire communities from areas such as Khirbet Zanuta and Khirbet al-Ratheem south of Hebron, al-Qanub east of Hebron, and Ein al-Rashash and Wadi al-Seeq east of Ramallah, occurring in October and November 2023.
The investigation’s results, unveiled on April 17, brought to light a series of crimes committed by illegal Israeli settlers against Palestinians amid the ongoing Gaza crisis. These offences include physical assaults, torture, sexual violence, theft, issuing death threats, and demolishing homes and schools.
Bill Van Esveld, associate Children’s Rights Director at HRW, stated: “While the attention of the world is focused on Gaza, abuses in the West Bank, fuelled by decades of impunity and complacency among Israel’s allies, are soaring.”
According to the report, hundreds of Palestinians, including entire communities, have fled their homes and lands after the military failed to ensure their safety or allow their return, leaving them in “precarious” circumstances.
Illegal Israeli settlers reportedly threatened Palestinians to “flee to Jordan” or face extermination, grazing their sheep on Palestinian lands, causing fear and mental harm, especially among children.
HRW discovered situations where armed illegal settlers, frequently accompanied by Israeli military units, obstructed roads, conducted incursions into Palestinian communities, detained, physically attacked, and instilled fear in residents, forcibly displacing them from their homes and hindering them from retrieving their belongings.
It said: “UN has recorded more than 700 settler attacks between Oct. 7 and April 3, with soldiers in uniform present in nearly half of the attacks.” These has led to over 1,200 displaced individuals, including 600 children, with at least 17 Palestinians killed and 400 wounded.”
The report also demonstrated the Israeli police’s failure to enforce laws against illegal Israeli settlers.It claimed Israel’s National Security Minister, Itamar Ben-Gvir, instructed police not to enforce the law against illegal settlers, citing a report by an Israeli investigative journalist.
As per HRW, countries such as the US, Germany, Italy, and the UK have exported weapons to Israel, raising “concerns” about complicity.
The report suggested that forcible transfer or deportation and the extensive destruction and appropriation of property in occupied territory are “war crimes” and called for accountability for those who are responsible.
The organisation said: “The US, the EU, the UK, and other countries should take action to ensure accountability for those responsible for war crimes and crimes against humanity.” It also called for sanctions and measures to suspend military support for Israel.
Following the October 7 attacks, the Israeli military enlisted 5,500 illegal settlers, some with criminal records, into West Bank “regional defence” units, distributing 7,000 rifles among them.
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