Record violence marks Israel’s push towards West Bank annexation , Pg9

Key Highlights:

• On August 8, Israel's security cabinet approved a plan to seize control of Gaza City, following PM Netanyahu's statement about taking full control of the Gaza Strip.
• The Israeli Parliament voted in favor of a declaration supporting the application of Israeli sovereignty to West Bank, referred to as Judea and Samaria.
• Since October 7, 2023, there has been a surge in violence in West Bank, with over 600 Palestinians killed by Israeli forces or settlers.
• In 2024, over 4,000 Palestinians were displaced from West Bank, marking the highest number recorded since 2009.

Detailed Insights:

• West Bank has been under Israeli occupation since 1967, but the situation has intensified since October 7, 2023, with increased settler attacks and displacements.
• Since 2023, West Bank has witnessed 3,500 attacks by Israeli settlers, accounting for 40% of all such attacks in the last two decades.
• Displacement in West Bank reached levels not seen since the start of Israel’s occupation, with 29,338 Palestinians displaced in 2025 due to Israeli operations in Jenin and Tulkaram.
• Since 2023, over 3,000 Palestinian homes and structures have been demolished, seized, or sealed in West Bank.
• More than a hundred outposts (illegal Israeli settlements) have been built in West Bank since 2023, with 61 built in 2024 alone.
• The number of illegal settlers in West Bank has increased from less than 5,000 in 1977 to over 5 lakh in 2023.

Key Concepts Involved:

• Annexation: The forcible acquisition of one state's territory by another state.
• Settler Violence: Acts of violence, intimidation, or property damage committed by Israeli settlers against Palestinians in the West Bank.
• Outposts: Israeli settlements built in the West Bank without official authorization from the Israeli government, considered illegal under Israeli law.