Terror against Palestinians
West calls for an end to settler violence in the West Bank
December 15, 2023, 4:43 p.m
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After the terrorist attack by Hamas on October 7th, Jewish settlers took revenge in the West Bank. Countries such as Great Britain and France as well as the European Union are now calling for an end to the violence. They see Israel as having a duty to act.
Several Western states have called on Israel to end settler violence against Palestinians. Israel must “take concrete measures to stop the unprecedented violence perpetrated by Israeli settlers in the occupied West Bank,” said a joint appeal published by the French Foreign Ministry, among others.
Signatories include Australia, Great Britain, Canada, France and the European Union and several other European countries. Germany and the USA are not mentioned. “We condemn the violent acts of extremist settlers who are terrorizing Palestinian communities,” it said. “The increase in violence by extremist settlers against Palestinians is unacceptable.” Since the beginning of October, settlers have carried out more than 340 attacks, killed eight Palestinian civilians, injured more than 80 and forced around 1,000 Palestinians from their homes.
Israel must protect the Palestinian civilian population in the West Bank. Those responsible must be brought to justice. “We reiterate our position that Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank are illegal under international law and remind Israel of its obligations under international law.”
The situation in the West Bank has worsened since the Islamist terrorist organization Hamas attacked Israel on October 7th and Israel responded with massive air strikes and a ground offensive in the Gaza Strip. During the Six-Day War in 1967, Israel conquered, among other things, the West Bank and East Jerusalem. Today, the Palestinian Authority administers parts of the West Bank, including major cities.
Israel has systematically expanded its disputed settlements in the West Bank. The United Nations has classified these settlements as a major obstacle to a peace settlement because they leave little contiguous territory for the Palestinians in a possible two-state solution.