More than 500 Palestinians killed by Israeli forces, settlers in West Bank since last October: UN

HAMILTON, Canada

The UN on Wednesday reported that in addition to the carnage in the Gaza Strip, more than 500 Palestinians, most of them are children, have been killed since last Oct. 7 in the occupied West Bank.

The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) reports that “since 7 October, more than 500 Palestinians – nearly a quarter of them children – have been killed in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem," Stephane Dujarric told reporters at a news conference.

Saying that Israeli forces are responsible for majority of the killings, Dujarric also noted that over "5,100 Palestinians were injured in these areas" during the same period.

"OCHA has also recorded more than 940 attacks by Israeli settlers against Palestinians in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, since 7 October," he added.

In the occupied West Bank as well as East Jerusalem, Israeli authorities "demolished, confiscated or forced the self-demolition of more than 900 Palestinian structures – nearly 40% of which were inhabited homes," leading to the forced displacement of more than 2,000 people, according to Dujarric.

Citing the UN agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA), Dujarric said: "The ongoing Israeli military operation in Rafah (southern Gaza) is directly impacting the ability of aid agencies to bring critical humanitarian supplies into Gaza, as well as the ability to rotate critical humanitarian staff."

He further stated that only 232 aid trucks were able to go through the Karem Shalom (Karem Abu Salem) border crossing into Gaza between May 28 and June 1, which he called "a significant reduction" compared to before the Rafah attack.

Tensions have been running high across the West Bank since Israel launched a deadly military offensive against the Gaza Strip after an attack by the Hamas group last Oct. 7.

Israel stands accused of “genocide” at the International Court of Justice, which in its latest ruling has ordered Tel Aviv to immediately halt its operation in Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip, where over a million Palestinians had sought refuge from the war before it was invaded on May 6.