By Sharon Zhang
This text was initially revealed by Truthout
The Trump administration insisted final week that it will not permit Israel to annex the occupied West Financial institution.
The UN Human Rights workplace for Palestine has warned that Israel is quickly accelerating its marketing campaign to annex the occupied West Financial institution, with settlers including outposts at a tempo 10 instances greater than the earlier common charge simply previously 12 months.
Latest settler assaults on the olive harvest have underscored the hazard confronted by Palestinian communities, the workplace famous, with this season alone seeing 150 settler assaults to date.
This contains an assault caught on digicam by a journalist final week, when a 53-year-old girl was overwhelmed by settlers and despatched to the hospital through the olive harvest; in addition to an assault on a 58-year-old olive farmer in Nahalin, west of Bethlehem, on Thursday, the workplace mentioned.
These assaults signify only a fraction of the settler violence confronted by Palestinians as Israel escalates its annexation marketing campaign amid its genocide in Gaza, the workplace mentioned. UN officers, citing Israeli group Peace Now, mentioned that there have been 757 settler assaults within the West Financial institution simply within the first half of 2025, marking a 13 p.c enhance over the earlier 12 months.
In the meantime, Israeli settlers have created 84 new unlawful outposts within the West Financial institution, marking a “speedy escalation” of the earlier tempo of eight new settlements per 12 months on common, the workplace mentioned.
The violence is “making life unimaginable for Palestinians in lots of communities throughout the occupied West Financial institution and leaving them with no real alternative however to go away their properties.”
“These actions advance Israel’s acknowledged coverage to consolidate annexation in clear violation of worldwide legislation,” the workplace mentioned.
The UN assertion comes simply days after the Trump administration repeated its supposed opposition to annexation.
“It received’t occur,” mentioned President Donald Trump final week when requested about annexation. “Israel would lose all of its help from america if that occurred.”
However because the UN assertion and that of different consultants has underscored, Israel is already within the technique of annexing the West Financial institution, each in coverage and in follow. Prime Israeli ministers have spent current months formalizing plans for annexation, vowing to annex the West Financial institution in all however identify or, in some circumstances, outright calling for the unlawful coverage.
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