Kathmandu— Dozens of Palestinian communities in the occupied West Bank face potential erasure due to escalating violence perpetrated by Israeli settlers, according to a recent report by Human Rights Watch (HRW). The US-based rights group alleges that Israeli authorities are not only failing to prevent these attacks but actively enabling them through funding, arming, and granting impunity to perpetrators. This surge in settler violence, particularly since December 2022 and spiking during the first two months of the war on Gaza, has resulted in killings, assaults, sexual violence, arbitrary detention, arson, property destruction, and ultimately, forced displacement of Palestinians from their land.

Escalating Violence and Displacement

HRW investigated settler attacks across seven Palestinian West Bank communities between April and May – including locations in Ramallah, Nablus, and the Jordan Valley. The report details a pattern where armed settlers often operate alongside Israeli military units, or with soldiers failing to intervene during raids on Palestinian residents and property. This has contributed to a significant rise in forced displacement, with UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) data indicating more Palestinians were displaced by settler attacks, demolitions, and evictions in the first four months of 2024 than in all of 2023.

State Support Allegations

The report accuses the Israeli government of actively supporting settler violence as part of a broader goal to maximize land control while minimizing the Palestinian population. Sarah Sanbar, acting Israel and Palestine researcher at Human Rights Watch, stated, “The Israeli government and the settlers share the same goal of maximum land and minimum Palestinians, with the authorities not only failing to stop settler violence, but actively enabling it.” She further explained that settlers are carrying out attacks while receiving weapons, legal cover, and financial support from the state.

Scale of Displacement

OCHA research reveals that 107 communities, comprising approximately 5,900 Palestinians, have been completely or partially displaced due to settler violence since January 2023. Additionally, the Israeli military has expelled another 32,000 Palestinians from their homes in the occupied West Bank since January 2023, effectively emptying refugee camps like Jenin, Tulkarem and Nur Shams. HRW asserts that this combination of attacks and lack of state protection is creating a coercive environment forcing many Palestinians to abandon their homes.

Human Rights Watch has called for targeted sanctions against those implicated in the abuses, suspension of weapons transfers to Israel, and a trade ban with illegal settlements, urging countries to consider suspending preferential trade agreements. The report emphasizes that international allies and donors share responsibility alongside Israel and should be held accountable.

(With inputs from Al Jazeera)

Originally published on abcnews.com.np.