UN High Commissioner denounces Israeli violence in West Bank

A Palestinian mother and child pass a damaged building following an Israeli army operation in Jenin refugee camp, West Bank, on November 26 Copyright 2023 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved

The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Volker Türk, is concerned about the situation in the Israeli-occupied West Bank. On Thursday in Geneva he called on Israel to “end the unlawful killings and violence by settlers against the Palestinian population”.

His office has documented the deaths of 300 Palestinians who died in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, between October 7 and December 27, according to a new report. Among them were 79 minors.

In the report, the office calls on Israel, among other things, to end the use of military weapons and resources in law enforcement operations and the arbitrary detention and ill-treatment of Palestinians: 291 Palestinians were killed by security forces in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, and eight by settlers, according to the report. In the case of one killing, it is still unclear who was responsible.

+ Volker Türk: ‘If there is one single message, it’s the centrality of human rights’

Before October 7, 200 Palestinians had already been killed in the area this year – the highest number in ten months since 2005, when the UN Human Rights Office began recording the deaths. In addition, Israeli security forces have arrested more than 4,700 Palestinians since October 7. Some of them were forced to strip naked. Soldiers had kicked them in the head, spat on them and humiliated them. There had also been sexual violence.

Türk called on Israel to put an end to violence by settlers. Palestinians who had been driven from their pastures by armed settlers should be able to return. The United Nations considers the Israeli settlements on Palestinian territory to be illegal.

+ ‘Declaring Hamas a terrorist organisation contradicts Switzerland’s neutrality’

On October 7, terrorists from the Gaza Strip attacked Israel, killing 1,200 people and kidnapping around 240. Israel responded with massive military operations against terrorists in the Gaza Strip. According to the authorities there, more than 21,000 people have been killed since then.

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