Growing settler violence in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, under the shadow of a Middle East war, has drawn both local and international condemnation.
Former Israeli Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni on Wednesday accused the government of fueling violence by occupiers in the West Bank and undermining the foundations of the state.
"A sovereign state has territory, one law for all, and a monopoly on arms,” Livni said in a statement on the X social media.
"Israel has no agreed border, there is no longer one law and justice for all, but a system of religious law and justice parallel to the laws of the state, and there are armed and violent militias that riot as they please,” she said.
"The Israeli government is dismantling the State of Israel," Livni warned.
On Thursday, several Palestinians, including an elderly man, were injured in an attack by Israeli occupiers in the northern West Bank, a local official said.
Moataz Basharat, who monitors Israeli settlement activity in Tubas governorate, said occupiers attacked Palestinian residents in the Safh Tayasir area, northeast of Tubas, injuring several people.
Some of the wounded were taken to a hospital for treatment, Basharat said.
Images and video showed an elderly Palestinian man soaked in blood and suffering bruises to his head and face after the attack.
Basharat said the same area has witnessed repeated attacks by Israeli occupants in recent weeks, amid an escalation in assaults on Palestinians and their property.
Earlier Wednesday, Norway’s Foreign Minister Espen Barth Eide told CNN that Israeli settler violence in the West Bank "is going into overdrive, it’s worse than ever."
"Settler violence (is taking place), settler activity, even supported by the Israeli government, allowing settlers to take full control of territories that legally are Palestine and which even agreements that Israel has signed have recognized as to be controlled by Palestinians,” he said.
‘Worse than ever'
Eide added that while global attention has focused on Gaza and now Iran, developments in the West Bank have intensified.
"A lot of bad things have happened on the West Bank and now it is going into overdrive. It's worse than ever,” he said.
He noted that the situation undermines Palestinian institutions and violates existing agreements.
"It’s a clear violation of U.N. principles and agreements that Israel and Palestine have signed,” he said.
Eide also warned of broader consequences if the situation persists.
She warned that in the long run, it could leave more space for hardliners when they see no progress in a more peaceful approach.
Israeli occupiers have escalated attacks against Palestinian towns and property across the West Bank since the Gaza war in October 2023.
Murders, arson, theft, and other crimes by the occupants, including incidents caught on camera, have gone almost entirely unpunished.
According to Palestinian figures, at least 1,133 Palestinians have been killed and about 11,700 others injured in attacks by the Israeli army and occupants in the occupied territory since Oct. 8, 2023.
Approximately 750,000 Israeli occupiers reside in hundreds of illegal settlements in the West Bank, including 250,000 in East Jerusalem, and they perpetrate daily attacks against Palestinian civilians to forcibly displace them.
In a landmark opinion in July 2024, the International Court of Justice declared Israel’s occupation of Palestinian territory illegal and called for the evacuation of all settlements in the West Bank and East Jerusalem.