UN inquiry: Israeli authorities involved in settler attacks on Palestinians; six nations sanction violence

A United Nations inquiry has directly implicated Israeli authorities in settler attacks that have resulted in the killing, injury, and displacement of Palestinians in the occupied West Bank. The report by the Commission of Inquiry on the Occupied Palestinian Territory found that Israeli authorities provided financial and military support for settler attacks, fostering an environment of impunity through judicial and law enforcement bodies.

Attacks on Palestinian villages and agricultural land have dramatically increased, rising by 130 percent since 2023. The report details how Israeli security forces have routinely accompanied settlers, effectively acting as a shield for the violence. This involvement signifies a "de facto collapse of the distinction between settlers and soldiers," according to the inquiry.

In response to the escalating violence, France, Britain, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and Norway have imposed coordinated sanctions. French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot announced that France has also barred Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, four settler organization leaders, and 21 individuals identified as violent settlers.

Israel has consistently rejected charges that its troops shield settlers, asserting that such actions are rogue incidents that violate military protocols and are subject to investigation. However, Israeli and Palestinian rights groups note that these investigations rarely result in punishment. The settlements themselves, where hundreds of thousands of Israeli settlers live among millions of Palestinians on land captured in 1967, are considered a violation of international law by most countries and the UN's top court, a stance Israel disputes.

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The increasing participation of Israeli security forces in settler attacks amounts to a de facto collapse of the distinction between settlers and soldiers.