Geneva: The United Nations on Friday said the deadly Israeli settler attack on a village in the occupied West Bank was “horrific”, adding that “by and large, we are seeing impunity” for such attacks.
One UN rights official said the Israeli state was responsible for at least some of the deadly violence in the Palestinian territory, adding it “needs to stop”.
“There are reports of Israeli security forces standing by as attacks take place,” UN human rights office spokeswoman Ravina Shamdasani told a press briefing.
“There are even reports of weapons being distributed to the settlers. So there is clearly a state responsibility in this regard.”
The Israeli military said “dozens of Israeli civilians, some of them masked”, had entered Jit, west of Nablus, on Thursday, and “set fire to vehicles and structures in the area, hurled rocks and Molotov cocktails”.
“It was horrific,” said Shamdasani.
“What is striking and important to remember is that yesterday’s killing in Jit is not an isolated attack, and it is the direct consequence of Israel’s policy of settlement in the West Bank,” she added.
“We have been reporting for the past years about settlers attacking Palestinian communities in their land in the West Bank with impunity, and this really is the crux of the matter: the impunity that the perpetrators of such grave violations have been enjoying.”
Violence in the West Bank, a Palestinian territory occupied by Israel since 1967 and separated from the Gaza Strip by Israeli territory, has surged since the Gaza war started on October 7.
Since then, more than 600 Palestinians have been killed by settlers or Israeli troops, according to the Palestinian authorities.
“We have verified that since October 7 and until yesterday, 609 Palestinians were killed in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, and including 146 children, eight women and at least four people with a disability,” said Shamdasani.
“Clearly this needs to stop - and key to this will be accountability for the perpetrators.”
She said there had been attacks by settlers and by Israeli security forces.
“By and large, we are seeing impunity. There have been some, very few, investigations - but even in those cases, most of the times, these do not conclude with justice for the victims and for the perpetrators.”
