Israeli soldiers have admitted to ignoring attacks by Israeli settlers against Palestinians in the occupied West Bank despite prior warnings, according to a report by Haaretz.
The newspaper said on Friday that 200 reservists sent a letter to Defence Minister Yisrael Katz and Chief of Staff Eyal Zamir expressing “deep concern over recent incidents of Jewish terror.”
The soldiers warned that violence against Palestinians has escalated and described what they called a growing pattern of inaction by Israeli forces.
Warnings ignored, responses delayed
One signatory said attacks on Palestinian homes and property were often known in advance but troops failed to intervene in time, arriving only after incidents had ended.
He added that, in some cases, forces spoke with settlers who had carried out arson and assaults, asked them to leave, and instead detained Palestinians present at the scene.
The same soldier said live ammunition had been used against Palestinians who were themselves under attack.
Allegations of broader shift in conduct
Another reservist said practices seen during the war in Gaza—including “excessive aggression, violence, and the destruction and looting of Palestinian property”—had carried over into operations in the occupied West Bank.
The soldiers also said their primary mission had become protecting settlements, with Palestinian complaints frequently ignored and little enforcement against settlers.
The report noted that such attacks have spread beyond Areas B and C into parts of Area A, signalling a widening scope of violence.
Violence in the occupied West Bank has intensified in recent weeks, with Palestinian officials reporting multiple fatalities from illegal Israeli settler gunfire since late February.
Around 750,000 Israeli settlers live across the occupied West Bank and occupied East Jerusalem, where rights groups say recurring attacks on Palestinians are contributing to displacement.
Since October 2023, the occupied West Bank has seen a sharp rise in violence, including killings, arrests, demolitions, and settlement expansion, amid growing international concern over a possible annexation of the territory.
