UNITED NATIONS, Jun 12: Violence by Israeli settlers in the occupied West Bank has reached record levels, with an average of six attacks daily causing casualties or damage, the UN said Thursday.
The number of such attacks this year has surpassed 1,000, said Stephane Dujarric, spokesman for the UN chief, citing the UN's Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA).
"Just last week, settler attacks resulted in the injury of more than 30 Palestinians and widespread damage to property, central infrastructure as well as livelihoods," Dujarric said.
"The current pace of settler attacks causing casualties or property damage, with an average of six incidents per day, is higher than any year on record," he said.
More than 2,200 Palestinians have been displaced this year due to settler violence or access restrictions, while hundreds more have been displaced due to home demolitions by Israeli authorities, he said.
More than a half million Israelis live in the West Bank -- excluding East Jerusalem, which has been annexed by Israel -- in settlements deemed illegal by the United Nations under international law.
Three million Palestinians also live there.
Israel has occupied the West Bank since 1967.
Violence has escalated in the West Bank during and since the Gaza war, which was triggered by an unprecedented attack on Israel by the Palestinian Islamist movement Hamas on October 7, 2023.
Reuters adds, Israeli and Palestinian civil society groups will meet in France on Friday to urge the international community not to abandon a two-state solution, as Paris seeks to keep the issue alive amid the Middle East war.
The meeting, attended by foreign ministers and senior officials from dozens of countries, marks one year since the UN-backed New York Declaration, which set out a roadmap toward Palestinian statehood and prompted around a dozen countries, including France, Britain and Canada, to recognise a Palestinian state.
"Given the current situation in the region, marked by seemingly endless conflicts, too many civilian casualties and a cycle of violence, and in light of the stalled implementation of the Gaza ceasefire ... we believe this conference is now more essential and urgent than ever,” France's Foreign Ministry spokesperson told reporters on Thursday.
The gathering will end with an eight-point “Call for Action” urging a permanent ceasefire, a halt to settlements, Gaza reconstruction, governance reforms and stronger international backing for civil society.
It will be delivered to the G7 leaders who meet in the French Alps from Monday.
"The region continues to fracture. Gaza is devastated, Israel remains under threat. Settler terrorism, settlement expansion, and de facto annexation and threats to the Palestinian Authority continue to undermine the viability of a future Palestinian state," according to the action plan seen by Reuters.
"Israelis and Palestinians alike remain trapped in fear, insecurity, and trauma. We return because, as the G7 convenes in Évian, this conflict risks once again being set aside. The window for a solution remains open; but it is narrowing."
The conference comes amid escalating violence by Israeli settlers in the occupied West Bank and underscores anger in many Western countries toward Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government, which has expanded settlements.
Diplomats say that expansion is aimed at undermining prospects for a Palestinian state."AGENCIES
