West Bank violence claims two lives as settler expansion intensifies
Separate incidents in Hebron and Jenin highlight the growing human cost of military raids and state-backed settler activity in the occupied territories.
Two Palestinians were killed in separate incidents in the occupied West Bank on Friday, underscoring the escalating tension between Israeli military operations and settler activity in the region. The deaths occurred against a backdrop of rapid settlement expansion and a reported surge in forced displacement, according to the Palestinian Ministry of Health and local authorities.
In Hebron, 17-year-old Karim Sanad Shalaldeh was fatally shot in the chest by Israeli settlers in the Khirbet Hamroush area. Local sources reported that large groups of armed settlers raided the area, opening fire on residents and setting homes ablaze. A 70-year-old man was also injured during the attack.
In a separate incident in Jenin, 58-year-old Fathi Khazem, a retired colonel in the Palestinian National Security Forces, was killed by Israeli forces during a home raid. The Israeli military stated that Khazem attempted to stab troops before being shot, while the Palestinian Health Ministry noted that his body was not released for burial and emergency services were initially prevented from reaching the scene.
The violence in Jenin also resulted in the injury of a 14-year-old boy, who was shot with live ammunition in the chest and back during a nearby raid. Israeli forces arrested six individuals during a separate operation in the city on the same day.
Broader institutional concerns have emerged regarding the E1 settlement project, which would cleave the West Bank in two. The United Kingdom, France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Canada, and Norway described Israel’s opening of construction tenders for the project as “unacceptable,” arguing it violates the territorial contiguity of the Palestinian territories.
A report by Human Rights Watch released on Thursday found that state-backed settler violence has displaced 107 Palestinian communities in the West Bank since January 2023. In Qusra, south of Nablus, Israeli settlers have besieged three Palestinian homes for 13 consecutive days, with the area declared a closed military zone.
