This week, international censure of Israel’s actions in the occupied West Bank escalated sharply, with France banning a senior Israeli minister, six Western nations imposing sanctions on settler networks, and Amnesty International accusing Israel of a „state-sponsored” campaign of ethnic cleansing aimed at annexing parts of the territory. Despite mounting criticism at the UN Security Council, where Secretary-General Antonio Guterres warned of a „presumption of impunity” and noted settler attacks now average six per day, Israel defiantly advanced its settlement agenda. The cabinet approved $388 million in funding for 69 settlements, moved to legalize violent outposts, and took the unprecedented step of establishing a permanent military base inside Area A—territory nominally under full Palestinian control—for the first time since the Oslo Accords.
The deepening entrenchment of settlements was visible across the West Bank, particularly northwest of Ramallah, where residents of Deir Abu Mash’al endured six days of confrontation with settlers attempting to establish an illegal outpost. Settlers expanded outposts elsewhere, bringing mobile units and caravans to sensitive areas, while seizing hundreds of dunums of land near Nablus as police stood by. Nightly raids saw masked, armed settlers attack villages, torching vehicles, homes, and mosques. Bedouin and herding communities faced a relentless campaign of harassment, water sabotage, and demolitions, with Israeli authorities destroying homes, agricultural sheds, and critical water infrastructure, including wells and pipelines, forcing families off their land. OCHA reported over 100 incidents damaging or destroying more than 190 water and sanitation structures since January.
In Gaza, despite a nominal ceasefire, Israeli strikes, shelling, and gunfire continued to kill Palestinians daily, with the post-ceasefire death toll surpassing 990 and the cumulative toll since October 2023 exceeding 73,000. On June 14 and 15, attacks in Jabalia, Nuseirat, and Gaza City killed multiple civilians, including a four-year-old girl, while Israeli forces advanced under heavy fire into eastern Gaza City, triggering fresh displacement. Israeli officials approved plans for a possible return to large-scale fighting, citing Hamas rebuilding efforts. The humanitarian crisis worsened as aid remained severely restricted, with over 70% of Gaza’s population dependent on water trucks, fuel supplies critically low, and cooked-meal production halved since March. Gaza’s health ministry reported that at least 16,500 patients, including Dr. Hussam Abu Safiya—who appeared via video link showing signs of torture after over 500 days in detention—were blocked from leaving for treatment.
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