West Bank families trapped by settlers as Israeli forces fail to intervene
UN human rights officials say three Palestinian families—15 people including at least two children—have been besieged inside a single home in the village of Qusra since Sunday after Israeli settlers cut their water and…
Source: United Nations News · August 16, 2026 at 5:44 PM · AI-assisted report
Single-sourceKUALA LUMPUR, 14 AUGUST 2026 —
UN human rights officials say three Palestinian families—15 people including at least two children—have been besieged inside a single home in the village of Qusra since Sunday after Israeli settlers cut their water and power.
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Ajith Sunghay, head of the UN office in the occupied Palestinian territory, told UN News the families were moved from their homes into one building that remains encircled by settlers. He said Israel Defence Forces soldiers were either unable or unwilling to protect the families, raising the possibility of collusion under the Geneva Convention.
UN human rights office OHCHR said the siege in Ras al Ein, south of Nablus, is part of a deliberate campaign to make life “unbearable” and force Palestinians off their land. It cited reports that the US ambassador to Israel had labelled the settlers “terrorists” and urged their removal, but Israeli authorities had not acted.
OHCHR said settlers have stepped up attacks on Qusra since November 2025, when they established an outpost nearby. Earlier pleas to Israeli troops for help were ignored; medics, activists and journalists have also been blocked from reaching the trapped families. On Wednesday soldiers dismantled settler tents but kept surrounding the homes.
Sunghay said the crisis in Qusra is part of a wider surge in settler violence across the West Bank. He cited the IDF sealing off Taybeh town on Tuesday to non-residents, allegedly to shield them from settler attacks. “It's the Palestinians who pay the price,” he said.
The UN also warned that Israeli settlers have reoccupied Ganim, one of four settlements evacuated in 2005, and that new outposts are being built as settlement expansion continues. UNRWA reported that military closure orders for Tulkarm, Nur Shams and Jenin camps have been extended until mid-2026, leaving more than 34,000 refugees displaced since Israel launched Operation Iron Wall in January 2025.
Sunghay said statements and dialogue were no longer sufficient. “We are past the stage of boiling point,” he said, calling on member states to use all available leverage to end the violence.