Israelis have killed at least 502 Palestinians in the occupied West Bank since October 7.
The latest killings took place on Thursday when three youths – Mohamed Youssef Nasr Allah, 27, Ayman Ahmed Mubarak, 26, and Hossam Emad Deabes, 22 – were killed by Israeli forces during a raid on Tulkarem.
More than 230 Palestinians have been killed in Israeli raids, while at least 20 are believed to have been killed by settlers from illegal settlements and outposts.
October 7 was the date of the Hamas-led attack on southern Israel and the start of Israel’s ongoing war on Gaza, which has killed more than 35,000 people and injured more than 70,000. others, with around 10,000 missing, presumed dead under the rubble. the band destroyed.
The violence has spread to the occupied West Bank and east Jerusalem, already tense after an Israeli campaign of military raids and an increase in settler violence.
According to United Nations figures, 154 Palestinians were killed in the occupied West Bank in 2022 after Israel began near-daily raids on the territory.
One of those killed was Tel Aviv Tribune correspondent Shireen Abu Akleh, who was killed by an Israeli sniper in Jenin in May 2022 while covering an Israeli raid there.
A far-right government led by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu came to power in late 2022 and has further escalated violence.
By October 7, at least 199 Palestinians had been killed in the West Bank in 2023.
Israeli raids, before and after October 7, ostensibly targeted Palestinian armed groups in the West Bank, as part of a policy Israel describes as “mowing the lawn” – eradicating any threat from Palestinian fighters before they can become stronger.
Israel would have ensured that new resistance groups without direct links to pre-established organizations such as Fatah or Hamas could not become nodes of armed power.
Since October 7, Israel has used the cover of the war on Gaza to intensify its attacks in the occupied West Bank and has become more brazen in using air power, such as helicopters and drones, to kill Palestinians. Israeli forces have killed many unarmed Palestinians.
“Israeli forces have (since October 7) unleashed a brutal wave of violence against Palestinians in the occupied West Bank, engaging in unlawful killings, including unnecessary or disproportionate use of lethal force during protests and arrests. , and refusing any medical assistance to the injured. said Amnesty International in February.
The UN called on Israel to end “unlawful killings” in the occupied West Bank in December, with the head of the UN human rights office in the occupied Palestinian territories telling Tel Aviv Tribune at the time that there was a lack of accountability, if not incitement, from Israeli officials. , led to increased violence by Israeli forces and Jewish settlers in the occupied West Bank.
“I think it is extremely important to emphasize that where there is impunity, violations will continue to occur,” said Ajith Sunghay.
The Israeli settler movement seeks to illegally populate the occupied West Bank and occupied East Jerusalem – and in some cases, Gaza – with Jewish settlers at the expense of Palestinians.
With representatives of the movement now sitting at the highest levels of the Israeli government, many settlers appear to have used October 7 as an excuse to intensify attacks against Palestinians, betting that the Israeli government would look the other way.
Israeli settlers have repeatedly descended on Palestinian towns and villages and attacked residents, in some cases forcing them to leave.
Last month, after such a wave of settler violence, Palestinians living near Ramallah expressed their fear to Tel Aviv Tribune.
“We are terrified… Most people try to leave the city or go to other countries if they have other nationalities,” one resident said at the time.
Palestinians in the occupied West Bank fear they will eventually face the same intensity of attacks and violence that Gaza has faced.
The occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem, has been under continuous illegal Israeli occupation since June 1967. Its status as occupied territory has been confirmed by the International Court of Justice and, with the exception of East Jerusalem, by the Supreme Court. Israeli.
UN decisions dating from 1979 stipulate that the establishment of any Israeli settlement in the territory is illegal.
But Israel has built more than 140 settlements on Palestinian land, home to hundreds of thousands of Israelis. The settlements restrict entry to Palestinians, including those who own the land they are built on.
A separate network of roads was also built for Jewish settlers – roads that Palestinians almost always cannot use.
Israeli policy in the West Bank has therefore been described as a policy of “apartheid” by Palestinians and human rights defenders around the world.