Alert for risk of "massive pogroms" after a night of unprecedented violence in the West Bank

The West Bank has experienced one of the most explosive days in recent months. A shooting in the village of Tell, southwest of Nablus, in which at least four Palestinians and two Israeli soldiers died, triggered a massive wave of settler attacks against several Palestinian communities early this morning. Israeli authorities have arrested seventy Palestinians, who have been taken to an interrogation center set up in a house in the village where the incident took place. The army and settlers have organized raids in which they have carried out more arbitrary arrests, after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu promised "forceful measures," such as demolishing the house of one of those involved in the riots and building new settlements in the area. Israeli settlers have attacked several Palestinian villages, including Urif, Surra, Far'ata, Jit, Imatin, Khirbet Imreiha, Iraq Burin, and the Masafer Yatta area, in the north and center of the West Bank. In Urif, a home was set on fire and at least one Palestinian was injured. In Far'ata, settlers burned agricultural land and shot a man in the chest, who is in critical condition. Other videos shared by residents of various localities show homes, businesses, and vehicles on fire, excavators uprooting olive trees, as well as the word revenge painted on the walls. In some of the incidents, according to local sources, Israeli troops dispersed Palestinian residents with tear gas.The incident that precipitated the escalation occurred after a group of Israeli settlers entered a restricted military zone without authorization or coordination with the army, according to the Israeli army. From here, the versions diverge. The army maintains that the settlers were on an unauthorized excursion when they were attacked and that a Palestinian snatched the weapon from one of the security members before opening fire. Palestinian witnesses, on the other hand, assure that it was the settlers, with the support of the soldiers present, who began to shoot at the inhabitants of the village.A video recorded during the events shows an armed settler trying to push two Palestinians away by pushing them with his rifle. A struggle for the weapon then ensues, while shouts of revenge in Hebrew are heard in the background. Moments later, one of the Palestinians appears holding the rifle and at least a dozen shots are heard coming from different points. Be that as it may, the result was four Palestinians and two Israeli soldiers dead, one of whom was also a settler, according to the Efe agency.A pretext to intensify the offensive

After the events in Tell, the Israeli Prime Minister and Defense Minister, Israel Katz, announced that they would intensify military operations in villages that Israel considers "a hotbed of terrorism." They announced new military deployments, the demolition of homes of suspects who may have participated in the Tell incident, the confiscation of weapons, and the withdrawal of work permits for the inhabitants of this village.Netanyahu also ordered the acceleration of the construction of new settler outposts in the area where the events occurred and the legalization of those that already exist, even though the settlements are considered illegal, according to international law and by the majority of the international community.

For their part, far-right ministers Bezalel Smotrich and Itamar Ben-Gvir have called for even more forceful measures. Smotrich has advocated for the demolition of the villages in the area and Ben-Gvir has demanded that these Palestinian localities be treated "like Bait Hanun", in the north of Gaza, a city devastated by months of bombing.NGO Alert

The Israeli government's response and the night of attacks have provoked criticism both from abroad and from within the country itself. The leader of the Democrats party, Yair Golan, has accused Netanyahu and Katz of showing a "clear intention to set the region ablaze," while the Israeli human rights organization B'Tselem and nineteen other entities have made an urgent call to the international community to act in the face of increased settler violence and Israeli military operations. The organizations warn that calls for revenge made by Israeli political leaders could lead to "mass pogroms" against the Palestinian population.Along the same lines, Doctors Without Borders has denounced the assault on the Specialized Hospital of Nablus. According to the center's management, Israeli soldiers surrounded the hospital, entered the emergency department, and detained two brothers, one of whom was an injured patient receiving medical treatment. The organization has warned that these events are not isolated incidents, but rather "part of a broader pattern of Israeli raids and state-supported settler violence".The day arrives after months of sustained escalation in the West Bank. According to the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), settler violence reached record levels during 2026. The body has documented more than 1,200 incidents with casualties or material damage in more than 240 Palestinian communities, an average of about six incidents daily. According to the Palestinian Ministry of Health, at least 87 Palestinians have died since the beginning of the year, 21 of whom in attacks attributed to Israeli settlers.