Germany slams killing of 5 Palestinians by illegal Israeli settlers in West Bank

Germany on Monday strongly condemned the recent killing of five Palestinian civilians by illegal Israeli settlers in the West Bank.

"We have taken note of these incidents, which we find deeply disturbing. Unfortunately, they are part of a whole series of violent attacks on the civilian population, and the fact that five Palestinian civilians were killed in just one week is indeed a sad climax," the Foreign Ministry's deputy spokesman Josef Hinterseher told journalists in Berlin.

"Violence against Palestinian civilians is unacceptable. It is Israel's responsibility to ensure their protection, and we therefore condemn these attacks in the strongest possible terms," he added.

Hinterseher stressed that "all incidents of settler violence must be investigated promptly and, above all, those responsible must be held accountable."

Violence in the West Bank has escalated since the start of the war in the Gaza Strip on Oct. 8, 2023, with Israeli forces and illegal Israeli settlers carrying out attacks that include killings, arrests, property destruction, home demolitions, displacement, and settlement expansion.

The attacks have killed at least 1,121 Palestinians and injured 11,700, in addition to the arrest of nearly 22,000 Palestinians.

Palestinians warn that the violations could pave the way for Israel to formally annex the West Bank, effectively ending the possibility of establishing a Palestinian state as envisioned in UN resolutions.

The international community and the UN consider the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, an occupied Palestinian territory and view Israeli settlements there as illegal under international law.