UN rights chief condemns 'abhorrent' attacks by West Bank settlers

The UN high commissioner for human rights on Friday condemned what he called an alarming escalation of Israeli settler attacks and Israeli military measures in the occupied West Bank, warning that some actions may amount to war crimes.

"Images of mobs of masked Israeli settlers carrying out arson attacks in the occupied West Bank this week are abhorrent and reflect a wider pattern of increased violence against Palestinians." Thameen Al-Kheetan told a weekly press briefing at the UN Office in Geneva.

Several people were injured in the incidents, which included an attack on a dairy factory and the burning of delivery trucks and homes.

UN officials say the violence has surged as Israeli authorities widen home demolitions, property seizures, arrests, and movement restrictions.

Al-Kheetan criticized the "unabated building of settlements and outposts and the forcible displacement and transfer of thousands of Palestinians by Israeli settlers and the military."

He warned that "permanently displacing the Palestinian population within occupied territory amounts to unlawful transfer, which is a war crime," adding that transferring Israeli civilians into occupied territory "also amounts to a war crime."

The UN says Israel's claims of sovereignty over the West Bank breach international law and violate Palestinians' right to self-determination. "The International Court of Justice has confirmed" this, Al-Kheetan noted.

More than 260 attacks by illegal Israeli settlers were recorded in October-the highest monthly figure since 2006.

According to UN figures, at least 1,017 Palestinians-including 221 children-have been killed by Israeli security forces and illegal settlers in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, since October 2023.

In the same period, 59 Israelis were killed in Palestinian attacks or armed clashes.

Recent victims include 13-year-old Aysam Jihad Labib Naser, who died after inhaling tear gas last month, and two 16-year-old boys shot dead on Nov. 6.