UN experts warn of rising settler violence, displacement risk in occupied Palestinian territory

UN experts on Monday warned of a sharp rise in Israeli settler violence in the occupied Palestinian territory, saying the attacks pose an existential threat to Palestinian communities and risk accelerating forced displacement, Anadolu reports.

In a statement, the experts said settler attacks, allegedly carried out with the support or acquiescence of Israeli authorities, have become a “daily terror” for Palestinians and are creating conditions that force people from their homes.

“The escalating violence, carried out with full impunity, serves as an instrument of coercion in the hands of the occupying power, facilitating ethnic cleansing,” they said.

The experts said settler brutality had reached “unprecedented levels” in 2026, with at least 13 Palestinians killed and nearly 500 injured in the first five months of the year, surpassing figures from previous years.

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Palestinian communities in Area C of the occupied West Bank, particularly in the Jordan Valley and South Hebron Hills, have been disproportionately affected by violence and displacement, the statement said.

The experts pointed to the village of Umm al-Kheir, which they said has faced repeated demolitions, utility cuts and settler attacks amid expanding settlement activity.

According to the readout, continued displacement of Palestinians could expose about 663 square kilometers (256 square miles) of land to further settlement expansion.

The experts also warned that growing regional tensions have diverted international attention from developments in the occupied Palestinian territory, allowing violence and displacement to continue without sufficient accountability.

They called on Israel to halt support for settlements and settler violence, ensure accountability for attacks and guarantee the safe return of displaced residents.

“Despite the blatant unlawfulness of its occupation of the West Bank, Israel remains bound by its obligations as an occupying power under the Geneva Conventions – including the duty to treat the Palestinian population as ‘protected persons’ under international humanitarian law,” the experts said.

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