<\/p>\n
According to the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), three Palestinian families comprising about 15 people, including at least two children, have been confined to homes in the Ras al Ain area of Qusra village, south of Nablus, since August 9. OHCHR said settlers had cut electricity and water supplies, leaving families living in fear as homes remained surrounded.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
\u201cThese criminal actions by the settlers, supported or acquiesced to by Israel, the Occupying Power, are making life unbearable for these Palestinian families and are clearly aimed at forcing them to leave their homes and their land,\u201d OHCHR said. The agency added that \u201ctime is running out\u201d before the families face forced displacement.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Reports indicate the United States (US) has become involved in efforts to end the siege. The US Ambassador to Israel called for the removal of what was described as \u201cIsraeli terrorists\u201d.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Ajith Sunghay, head of the UN Human Rights Office in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, told UN News that the affected families had since been moved into a single house that remains encircled by settlers.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Sunghay accused Israeli authorities of failing to protect Palestinian communities. Again, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) is either unable or unwilling to protect Palestinian communities, which they are expected to do so under the Geneva Convention; or worse, that the IDF is in collusion with the Israeli settlers, all aimed at displacing Palestinians and occupying their lands,\u201d Sunghay said.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Sunghay said approximately 20 Palestinian families from Qusra had also been evacuated by Israeli soldiers for security reasons. Sunghay stressed that international statements of concern were no longer sufficient. \u201cWe are seeing unprecedented level of settler violence and we call on Member States to act, use its leverage in every possible manner,\u201d Sunghay said.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
OHCHR said attacks against residents of Qusra have increased since November 2025 when settlers established a nearby outpost. Previous requests for military intervention reportedly failed to halt harassment.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
The agency further alleged that Israeli security forces prevented medics, activists and journalists from reaching affected families. Although soldiers dismantled settlers’ tents on August 12, settlers continued surrounding Palestinian homes.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
The developments come amid wider tensions across the occupied West Bank. OHCHR highlighted restrictions in Taybeh and the return of settlers to Ganim, one of four settlements evacuated in 2005.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
UNRWA also reported continued settler violence, harassment and settlement expansion across the territory. The agency said more than 34 000 Palestinian refugees remain displaced from the Jenin, Tulkarm and Nur Shams camps following Israel’s military operation Iron Wall, which began in January 2025.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
–UN\/ChannelAfrica–<\/p>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":42443,"template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false},"news-type":[26],"class_list":["post-42442","news","type-news","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","news-type-general_news","entry"],"acf":{"short_description":"The United Nations (UN) has urged Israeli authorities to protect Palestinian families trapped in their homes by Israeli settlers in the occupied West Bank, warning that an escalating campaign of violence risks forcing residents from ancestral land.","published_date":"","news_description":"The United Nations (UN) has urged Israeli authorities to protect Palestinian families trapped in their homes by Israeli settlers in the occupied West Bank, warning that an escalating campaign of violence risks forcing residents from ancestral land.","form_embed":"","author":"","image_caption":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news\/42442","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/news"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news\/42442\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":42444,"href":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news\/42442\/revisions\/42444"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/42443"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=42442"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"news-type","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news-type?post=42442"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}