Israel Warns of ‘Explosion’ in West Bank Amid Settlement Violence Surge

According to the International Desk of Webangah News Agency, the West Bank has recently experienced a new wave of settler attacks across at least seven areas, resulting in 13 injuries according to published reports. Concurrently, warnings from Israeli security officials regarding the potential for the situation to “spiral out of control” indicate that concerns about the repercussions of this trend are not confined to the Palestinian side but are also intensifying within Israel’s own political and security structures.

A wave of attacks has swept through the West Bank. In the village of Qusra, south of Nablus, dozens of settlers targeted a Palestinian home in the Ras al-Ain area, injuring several residents by throwing stones and using tear gas. Three Palestinian families in this area have been under siege for 21 consecutive days, with Israeli army forces restricting their access to their homes. The Palestinian Red Crescent has reported that settlers attacked an ambulance attempting to reach one of the besieged homes.

Simultaneously, in the village of Jalud, settlers attacked a Palestinian family and two foreign journalists, resulting in several injuries. Attacks and military actions have also been reported in other areas of the West Bank, including Araba, Raba, Al-Mughayyir, and Burqa. In Al-Mughayyir, settlers, supported by Israeli army forces, attacked sections of the village and attempted to enter a home. Israeli forces responded by firing tear gas at Palestinians.

In the same region, the Israeli army has blocked the main entrance to the village since Friday evening, restricting residents’ movement. The Palestinian Ministry of Foreign Affairs states that the village has been under siege for approximately 20 days, with residents having only about two hours per day to move around. In Burqa, settlers attacked Palestinians and farmers, destroying a vehicle.

Security warnings are escalating in Tel Aviv. In parallel with the increase in these attacks, Israeli media outlets have also warned of their security implications. Israel’s Channel 15, quoting a military source, reported that the West Bank is “on the verge of an explosion” and that the Israeli army is at risk of losing control of the situation.

Israel’s Channel 13 has documented 70 incidents of settler-related confrontations and violence, reporting that security agencies have warned of the potential for widespread escalation in the West Bank. According to the report, the Israeli army is also concerned about attempts by certain political factions to draw military forces into extensive confrontations in the West Bank before elections, a development that the military establishment views as potentially turning the army into a party to the conflict. This concern arises as settler attacks and Israeli army operations continue simultaneously in various parts of the West Bank, leading, according to Palestinian sources, to the creation of new conflict zones.

Netanyahu and Herzog issue superficial condemnations to manage the crisis. The expansion of settler attacks has drawn reactions from senior Israeli officials. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has outwardly condemned the settler attacks in Qusra and Jalud, describing the perpetrators as “a small number of rioters.” Netanyahu claimed these individuals damage Israel’s global standing by violating the law and hindering army activities, announcing that steps would be taken to arrest and prosecute them. Israeli President Isaac Herzog also described the violence in Qusra as “dangerous” and “crossing red lines,” calling for decisive action to confront it. The Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs has also condemned these attacks, claiming that army and border police forces have been dispatched to the area to halt settler violence.

However, former Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak asserts that these attacks are not merely spontaneous actions by settlers but are carried out with the “direct encouragement” of certain Israeli political officials.

Settlement expansion is another facet of the crisis. Alongside the rise in violence, the expansion of settlements continues in the West Bank. In the Hebron Governorate, the transfer of settler families to the new settlement of “Karmi Yehuda” has begun. According to published reports, this settlement is situated among a cluster of existing and new settlements, contributing to geographical contiguity between them.

The significance of this trend is not limited to the construction of a single new settlement; rather, the creation of connections between a series of settlements can lead to the formation of a continuous settlement belt in the western and southwestern Hebron region. Palestinian sources report that new settlements are filling the gaps between existing ones, a process that could alter the region’s geography and make movement between Palestinian areas more difficult. In this context, the Palestinian Commission for Resisting the Wall and Settlements announced that the Israeli army and settlers carried out 2,256 attacks against Palestinians, their lands, and property in July alone.

Pressure on UNRWA continues. In another development, Israel’s actions against institutions affiliated with the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) have persisted. Israeli forces raided the Qalandiya Educational Institute in northern Jerusalem, sealed its doors, and installed surveillance cameras inside the center. UNRWA has stated that Israeli forces engaged in illegal actions upon entering the center and caused damage to parts of the building.

The Qalandiya Educational Center has been operating since 1952, becoming a crucial center for vocational training for Palestinian refugees for over seven decades. According to Palestinian officials, more than 40,000 Palestinians have graduated from this center.

The sum of these developments indicates that the crisis in the West Bank is no longer limited to sporadic settler attacks. Instead, the confluence of field violence, military operations, movement restrictions, settlement expansion, and pressure on Palestinian institutions has created a situation that even Israeli security agencies have warned about concerning its consequences.