Israeli demolitions, settler violence displace 4,100 Palestinians
UN says demolitions and settler attacks are accelerating displacement across occupied West Bank, with children among those driven from homes
WEST BANK, Palestine (MNTV) — About 4,100 Palestinians have been forcibly displaced across the occupied West Bank this year through Israeli demolitions, settler violence and restrictions on access, according to the United Nations.
UN deputy spokesperson Farhan Haq warned of a particularly sharp escalation in demolitions in Masafer Yatta, where Israeli authorities have destroyed Palestinian homes and essential infrastructure in recent days.
The UN humanitarian office said Israeli authorities demolished 20 homes and other structures, including a water cistern and solar panels, in two Palestinian herding communities in Masafer Yatta.
Further demolitions in a nearby community the following day brought the number of recently displaced people to nearly 60, about half of them children.
The destruction has also hit property constructed with international donor assistance, according to Haq, adding to criticism of policies that leave Palestinian communities without adequate protection or access to basic services.
Masafer Yatta is home to roughly 1,200 Palestinians living across 13 communities. Israel has designated the area as a military “firing zone,” a classification Palestinians and rights groups have repeatedly criticized as a mechanism for restricting their presence and facilitating displacement.
The UN has also recorded a rise in attacks by Israeli settlers against Palestinian communities in the area, particularly since settlement outposts were established nearby.
The violence has compounded the pressure created by demolitions and restrictions on movement and access.
UN officials and humanitarian partners visited Masafer Yatta this week and met Palestinians who had been displaced from their homes.
Aid groups are providing emergency shelter, food, hygiene supplies, baby products and psychosocial assistance to affected families.
Across the West Bank, about 1,500 Palestinians have been displaced this year directly by demolitions, while more than 2,600 others have been displaced through settler violence and associated access restrictions, according to UN figures.
The accelerating demolitions and attacks underscore what Palestinian communities and humanitarian organizations describe as a deepening system of displacement in the occupied territory, with families increasingly forced to abandon homes, farmland and livelihoods under conditions of sustained Israeli control.
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