UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has expressed deep concern regarding Israeli plans to accelerate the legalization of outposts and establish new ones in the occupied West Bank. The UN considers the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, to be occupied Palestinian territory and maintains that Israeli settlement activity there is illegal under international law.
Guterres stated that all settlements, including outposts, lack legal validity and represent a flagrant violation of international law. He emphasized that settlement activities remain a major obstacle to achieving a two-state solution and lasting peace.
Rising violence and casualties
Violence in the West Bank has escalated since the Hamas attack in Israel on Oct 7, 2023, with near-daily attacks by Israeli settlers and regular raids on Palestinian villages. Since last Thursday, eight Palestinians, including a boy, and two members of the Israeli military have been killed in the West Bank.
According to official Palestinian figures, Israeli forces and occupiers have killed at least 1,182 Palestinians in the West Bank since October 2023, injured thousands, and detained around 24,000 people. In 2026 alone, 77 Palestinians, including 18 children, have been killed by Israeli forces or occupiers as of Saturday.
The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) has documented over 1,330 incidents involving Israeli occupiers resulting in casualties or property damage since the beginning of 2026. Reports indicate that homes, mosques, and agricultural lands have been vandalized or set on fire by Israeli occupiers.
International legal context
The International Court of Justice issued a non-binding advisory opinion in July 2024 stating that Israel's decades-long occupation of Palestinian territory is illegal. ICJ presiding judge Nawaf Salam stated that Israel's continued presence in the Palestinian territories is illegal.
About 750,000 Israeli occupiers live in 156 settlements and 360 settlement outposts across the occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem. Ravina Shamdasani, UN human rights office spokeswoman, said that attacks by Israeli settlers and the creation of outposts are hitting an all-time high and that third states must act urgently to halt the killing and end the occupation.
Ramiz Alakbarov, UN deputy special coordinator for the Middle East peace process, warned the UN Security Council that the situation in the occupied West Bank is rapidly deteriorating.