What is happening in the Occupied West Bank?

Israeli settlers set fire to two mosques in separate attacks in the occupied West Bank in the early hours of Sunday, causing significant damage and daubing them with racist graffiti.

The mosques are Al-Rahma in Qusra, south of Nablus, and one in the village of Kour, south of Tulkarem.

Recommended Stories

list of 4 items- list 1 of 4Why are Israeli settlers on a rampage in the occupied West Bank?

- list 2 of 4Israeli crackdown in occupied West Bank intensifies, settlers cause mayhem

- list 3 of 4Israeli settlers burn two mosques in occupied West Bank

- list 4 of 4Israeli forces storm multiple West Bank towns, settler violence worsens

Israeli settlers also spray-painted the words “Jewish revenge” as the mosques were set on fire.

This is the latest incident in years of violent occupation and ethnic cleansing of the Palestinian people by Israeli settlers and forces.

Palestinian officials say at least 45 mosques were vandalised or burned by illegal settlers in the West Bank in 2025 alone.

On Friday, a group of Israeli settlers who are supposed to be restricted from entering Palestinian areas entered the village of Tal (Tell), southwest of Nablus, triggering a confrontation with Palestinian residents.

According to Al Jazeera Arabic, the residents forced them to retreat, but the settlers stormed back within the hour, past the Havat Gilad settlement post, sparking clashes and physical fighting between the unarmed Palestinian residents and the armed settlers.

Farouk Ramadan, an unarmed resident, reportedly seized a rifle from an armed Israeli and opened fire.

During the incident, four Palestinians and two Israeli soldiers were killed, while several others were wounded.

Is Israeli settler violence in the West Bank common?

Data from the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) shows that between January 1, 2025 and June 31, 2026, there were 3,033 Israeli settler attacks.

The Ramallah and el-Bireh governorate recorded the highest-ever number of settler attacks for the same time period, with 881 incidents, followed by Nablus with 660 and Hebron with 497.

Since Israel’s genocidal war on Gaza began in October 2023, violence by Israeli settlers in the occupied West Bank has steadily risen.

Some 1,291 settler attacks were recorded in 2023, rising to 1,449 in 2024, 1,835 in 2025 and 761 in the first four months of 2026. That equates to an average of 190 attacks per month in 2026, up from 153 per month in 2025 – a 24 percent increase in the monthly rate.

Every West Bank governorate has faced settler attacks over the past year.

Who are Israeli settlers?

Settlers are Israeli citizens living in illegal, Jewish-only communities, known as Israeli settlements, built on Palestinian-owned land that Israel occupied in 1967.

Benjamin Netanyahu – Israel’s longest-serving prime minister – has bolstered settlement expansions since he first came to power in 1996, undermining the 1993 Oslo Accords, which called for the freezing of settlements and a mutually negotiated two-state solution.

Earlier this year, for example, the Israeli government approved a plan to begin land registration in the occupied West Bank, meaning it will be able to seize land from Palestinians who cannot prove ownership.

Today, roughly 10 percent of Israel’s Jewish population, totalling between 600,000 and 750,000 people, live in about 250 settlements and outposts dispersed throughout the occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem.

Many of these settlements are located near Palestinian population centres, often leading to increased tensions and restrictions on movement for Palestinians.

Israeli settler violence has displaced thousands

In recent years, illegal Israeli settlers have intensified incursions into Palestinian land and expanded illegal settlements, as part of an effort to seize more Palestinian land.

In total, at least 1,988 Palestinians were displaced across the occupied West Bank in the first four months of 2026.

That’s already 20 percent more than 2025’s tally for the entire year, according to figures compiled by OCHA.

Since January 2025, the greatest displacement of Palestinians in settler attacks has been seen in Ramallah (1,205), followed by Jericho (861) and Tubas (619).

Why most demolitions and attacks are in Area C

As part of the 1993 Oslo Accords, signed by the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) and Israel, the occupied West Bank was divided into three areas – A, B and C.

The accords also provided for the formation of the Palestinian Authority (PA) – an administrative body charged with governing Palestinian internal security, administration and civilian affairs in areas of self-rule, for a five-year interim period.

Area A initially comprised 3 percent of the West Bank and grew to 18 percent by 1999. In Area A, the PA controls most affairs.

Area B represents about 22 percent of the West Bank. In both areas, while the PA is in charge of education, healthcare and the economy, the Israelis have full control of external security, meaning they retain the right to enter at any time.

Area C represents 60 percent of the West Bank. Under the Oslo Accords, control of this area was supposed to be handed over to the PA. However, this never happened, and Israel retains total control over all matters, including security, planning and construction. Although Area C is the least populated area of the West Bank, with about 300,000 Palestinians compared with about three million in Areas A and B, the vast majority of home demolitions and settler attacks occur there, due to it being under full Israeli military and administrative control.

The Israeli Civil Administration rarely grants building permits to Palestinians in this area, so nearly all Palestinian construction is considered illegal and subject to demolition.

Reporting originally appeared via Al Jazeera. Read the full source for additional context.