UN experts warn Israel’s attacks in West Bank mark ‘dangerous escalation’

In a statement, they urged the international community to take action to protect the human rights and dignity of the Palestinian people.

“We are dismayed by the escalation of deadly violence sweeping through Jenin and the rest of the occupied West Bank,” they said.

They noted that bombing Jenin, destroying vital infrastructure and essential services such as water and electricity and raiding hundreds of homes are only aggravating a deeply unstable situation in the West Bank.

“Israel’s repression seems to have no end in sight,” added the statement.

The experts also warned that such attacks only deepen suffering and violence, noting that an alarming number of civilians from the occupied West Bank and especially the Jenin refugee camp have been detained and at least 16 people killed.

“The Israeli government must instruct its military and security forces to immediately cease any use of excessive force and exercise restraint and withdraw its troops from the occupied West Bank, as ordered by the International Court of Justice (ICJ) in July 2024,” they stressed.

They noted, however, that these “acts of aggression” are not new for Palestinians in the West Bank, as targeting refugee camps has been a feature of the Israeli assault on the territory since Oct. 7, 2023.

The statement added that the experts were gravely concerned about comments by Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz that sought to justify the new onslaught as a response against “Palestinian terrorism.”

Referring to the timing of the attacks, the experts said they came in the wake of a US decision to lift limited sanctions on Israeli settlers and by Israeli authorities to remove administrative detention and other sanctions for Israeli settler violence.

This is “effectively offering a greenlight for more unchecked violence” against the Palestinian people, they stated

“The lack of intervention by states to protect Palestinians in line with international law is alarming and of catastrophic ramifications.”

“Like other indigenous peoples before them, the Palestinian people seem to have been abandoned to their fate. We cannot let it happen; this would be the greatest failure of the human rights system,” they continued.

Their observations came as the Israeli army continued a military operation in the West Bank city of Jenin, killing at least 16 Palestinians and injuring 50 since last week.

Tensions have been running high across the occupied West Bank due to Israel’s war on Gaza, where more than 47,300 people have been killed and 111,500 injured since Oct. 7, 2023.

At least 880 Palestinians have been killed and more than 6,700 injured by Israeli forces in the occupied territory, according to the Palestinian Health Ministry.

A ceasefire and prisoner exchange agreement took effect in Gaza on Jan. 19, suspending Israel’s genocidal war on the enclave.

Last July, the International Court of Justice declared Israel’s longstanding occupation of Palestinian territories illegal, calling for the evacuation of all settlements in the West Bank and East Jerusalem.