Humanitarian Situation Update #204 | West Bank

The Humanitarian Situation Update is issued by OCHA Occupied Palestinian Territory three times per week. The Gaza Strip is covered on Mondays and Fridays, and the West Bank is covered on Wednesdays. The next update will be issued on 16 August.

Key Highlights

• The number of Palestinian children killed by live ammunition fired by Israeli forces has almost tripled since 7 October compared with the preceding 10 months (115 compared to 39).
• The number of Palestinian children injured by live ammunition fired by Israeli forces has more than doubled since 7 October compared with the preceding 10 months (1,411 compared to 615).
• Israeli settlers assault two Palestinian children by handcuffing them, breaking their legs, and urinating on them in a settler outpost near Bethlehem.

Humanitarian Developments (6 August -12 August)

• During the reporting period, Israeli forces killed five Palestinians, and another 54 Palestinians, including 11 children, were injured by Israeli forces and Israeli settlers across the West Bank, including East Jerusalem. Eight out of the 11 children were injured by Israeli forces’ live ammunition. In the West Bank, Palestinians shot and killed an Israeli civilian and a Palestinian in two separate incidents. On 7 and 11 August, two Palestinian men succumbed to wounds sustained by Israeli airstrikes on 5 August, bringing the total number of Palestinians killed during that Israeli forces’ operation in Jenin to seven.
  • On 6 August, Israeli forces shot and killed a Palestinian man near Khirbet ‘Atuf, southwest of Tubas city. The body of the man is currently being withheld by Israeli forces. The Israeli military claims that the man was on his way to attack Bakaot settlement with a firearm. The Palestine Red Crescent Society’s (PRCS) medics were physically assaulted by Israeli forces when they arrived at the scene. Israeli forces seized their phones, took them to the back of the ambulance, and started physically assaulting them while other soldiers pointed their guns at them and threatened them to stay silent.
  • On 6 August, a Palestinian was shot and killed by Israeli forces at the Tunnels checkpoint after he attempted to stab a group of soldiers stationing at the checkpoint. One female member of the Israeli forces was injured. The body of the Palestinian man is being held by the Israeli authorities.
  • On 6 August, Israeli forces shot and killed two Palestinians and injured three others during an operation in Kafr Qud village in west Jenin city. The forces encircled and broke into a Palestinian house where local sources reported an exchange of fire could be heard. Two bodies were taken away by Israeli forces and three Palestinians were arrested during the operation. On 11 August, one of the Palestinians arrested died from wounds sustained by live ammunition while he was under Israeli custody.
  • On 7 August, Israeli forces shot and injured three Palestinians, including two children aged 12 and 13, during an operation in Askar Refugee Camp, east of Nablus. According to UNRWA, Israeli forces entered the main street of the camp and as they were crossing the main road, opened fire at Palestinians who were standing in front of their homes. No confrontations were reported in the area.
  • On 8 August, Israeli forces shot and injured two Palestinian boys, aged 12 and 17, during an operation in Qalqiliya city. According to the Qalqiliya municipality, Israeli forces entered the city, leading to armed clashes between Palestinians and Israeli forces, where the boys were injured.
  • On 10 August, Israeli forces shot and injured four Palestinians, including three children, during an operation in the village of Beit Furik, east of Nablus. According to the Beit Furik Municipality, Israeli forces entered the village where confrontations erupted between Palestinian who threw stones at the Israeli forces, who fired live ammunition at the Palestinians.
  • On 11 August, Palestinians shot and killed an Israeli civilian, and injured a Palestinian man who holds Israeli citizenship, in a drive-by shooting on Route 90 in the northern Jordan Valley. Palestinians in a vehicle opened fire on a passing car near the junction of the Israeli settlement of Mechola on Route 90, after which they proceeded to drive and shoot at other vehicles. Following this incident, Israeli forces closed Route 90 and Route 578, as well as all checkpoints leading to the Jordan Valley and Jericho for about three hours, causing severe traffic congestion, while they searched for the perpetrators in nearby villages.
  • On 12 August, a Palestinian man shot and killed one Palestinian and injured one other Palestinian and an Israeli settler in east Qalqiliya city. The Palestinian who perpetrated the attack was later shot and killed by Israeli forces. A Palestinian man shot at an Israeli settler who was fixing his vehicle at a Palestinian-owned auto repair shop. The settler was injured, and two other Palestinian bystanders were hit in the process. The shooter then left the scene towards Road 55 where he reportedly exchanged fire with Israeli forces and was killed near Azzun village. His body and vehicle are being withheld by the Israeli forces.
  • Between 7 October 2023 and 12 August 2024, 594 Palestinians were killed in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, in addition to two who died of wounds sustained prior to 7 October. These include 577 killed by Israeli forces, ten by Israeli settlers, and seven where it remains unknown whether the perpetrators were Israeli forces or settlers. There are over 100 instances of Palestinian bodies being withheld by Israeli forces. The number of Palestinian children killed by Israeli force’s live ammunition has almost tripled (115 compared to 39) and the number of Palestinian children injured by Israeli force’s live ammunition has more than doubled since 7 October compared with the preceding 10 months (1,411 compared to 615). During the same period, 15 Israelis, including nine members of Israeli forces and five settlers, were killed by Palestinians in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem. In Israel, attacks by Palestinians from the West Bank resulted in the killing of ten Israelis and six Palestinian perpetrators.
• During the reporting period, Israeli settlers perpetrated 25 attacks against Palestinians, resulting in six injuries, including two children, and damage to property. Palestinians perpetrated three attacks against settlers in this period, resulting in the injury of one Israeli settler. Between 7 October 2023 and 12 August 2024, OCHA recorded around 1,250 attacks by Israeli settlers against Palestinians, of which around 120 led to Palestinian fatalities and injuries, around 1,000 led to damage to Palestinian property, and around 130 led to both casualties and property damage. The following are some of the key incidents documented by OCHA during the reporting period:
  • On 6 August, Israeli settlers believed to be from Havat Ma’on, physically assaulted and injured two Palestinians shepherds, including one woman, near Tuba, Hebron. The settlers attempted to seize the herd of about 400 sheep and take them towards the settlement. Other Palestinians intervened to stop the settlers and prevented them from taking the sheep further, during which two Palestinians were injured. The settlers eventually left the area, and the injured Palestinians were treated on the ground by PRCS.
  • On 6 August, a group of Israeli settlers believed to be from Evyatar settlement outpost, attacked Palestinian property in Yatma village, south of Nablus city. According to the village council and the affected villagers, a group of Israeli settlers threw stones and set fire to Palestinian property, causing damage to three residencies, a vehicle scrap yard, one car, and olive trees. One man reported that the settlers set fire to the main entrance of his home and threw stones at him while he was trying to extinguish the fire. No injuries were reported.
  • On 7 August, Israeli settlers threw stones and injured a Palestinian woman on the road between Al Bireh and Al Jalazun Refugee Camp, Ramallah. Local community sources reported that Israeli settlers gathered at Israeli military observation towers along the barrier of Beit El settlement, where they threw stones at Palestinian vehicles. Israeli settlers have frequently used these towers to throw stones at Palestinian vehicles. A Palestinian woman was driving with her windows open when one of the stones hit and injured her head. The woman managed to drive to the entrance of Al Jalazun Refugee Camp and lost consciousness. She was later transferred to the hospital and received medical treatment. At least two vehicles sustained damage as a result of the attack.
  • On 9 August, a group of armed Israeli settlers believed to be from Itamar settlement, physically assaulted and injured a Palestinian man near Awarta town, southeast of Nablus city. The Palestinian man was driving to work after he passed through the Awarta checkpoint, when an Israeli vehicle blocked his path. Four masked Israeli settlers, one of them armed, exited the vehicle and attacked him and his vehicle with sticks. The man managed to escape and went to the hospital. The man reports that his vehicle was partially damaged.
  • On 12 August, Israeli settlers believed to be from a newly established Israeli outpost settlement near Khallet an Nahala, physically assaulted and injured two 15-year-old Palestinian boys near Artas, Bethlehem. The boys were herding sheep around Artas village when they were attacked by a group of Israeli settlers armed with knives, which the settlers put to their necks and forced them into the nearby settler outpost. The settlers then assaulted the boys, broke their legs, and urinated on them. Afterwards, the settlers handcuffed the boys, put them in a vehicle and threw them in an open area near Artas where one of the locals noticed them lying on the ground and called for an ambulance. The boys were then taken to a nearby hospital for treatment.
• Between 6 and 12 August, Israeli authorities demolished or forced the demolition of nine Palestinian-owned structures, one of which was a punitive demolition and eight were due to the lack of Israeli-issued building permits, which are almost impossible to obtain. Eight of the demolished structures were in Area C and East Jerusalem. As a result, 37 Palestinians, including 13 children, were displaced and around 789, including 520 children, were otherwise affected.
• On 7 August, the Israeli Civil Administration along with Israeli forces dismantled and confiscated three donor-funded tents in the Birin herding community, Hebron governorate. The incident took place in Area C for lacking an Israeli-issued building permit. As a result, three families comprising 15 people including 6 children were displaced. The tents were provided by the Palestinian Authority as a response to a previous demolition that took place on 4 July 2024 in the same area.
• On 7 August, the Israeli Civil Administration along with Israeli forces, demolished an under-construction building belonging to the village council of Furush Beit Dajan in Area C, Nablus governorate. As a result, the village of Furush Beit Dajan, comprising 774 people were affected. The targeted structure was a donor-funded, two-story building that was intended to contain the village council offices and the council hall. According to the head of the council, the demolition took place due to a lack of an Israeli-issued permit. In response, the council immediately appointed a lawyer to follow up on the case, but they were unable to secure a building permit. Additionally, the head of the council was fined 5,000 NIS by Israeli forces for building in Area C without a permit. Since 7 October, Israeli authorities have demolished 16 structures, displacing almost 50 people and almost 20 children.
• On 8 August, the Israeli Civil Administration along with Israeli forces used explosives to punitively demolish a residential apartment in a three-story building in Dura town, Area A in Hebron governorate. The demolished apartment belongs to Momen Masalama's family, a Palestinian who committed a stabbing attack in Israel which resulted in killing an Israeli and injuring others on 1 April 2024. Another apartment in the building suffered from cracks and had some windows damaged. Vegetable crops in a nearby agricultural land were also damaged. The Israeli forces evacuated at least 10 families from the neighbouring houses for more than four hours during the demolition. As a result, one family comprising eight people, including a child were displaced and two other families comprising 13 people, including three children were affected.
• Between 1 January and 12 August, 750 structures were demolished and 963 were displaced for lacking Israeli-issued building permits in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, compared with 566 structures demolished and 644 people displaced in the corresponding period in 2023.
• Between 7 October 2023 and 12 August 2024, Israeli authorities demolished, confiscated, or forced the demolition of 1,380 Palestinian structures across the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, displacing more than 3,100 Palestinians, including 1,375 children, which is more than double compared to the same period of time before October 7, where 1,252 Palestinians were displaced, including 579 children. The demolitions after 7 October include over 500 inhabited structures, 100 uninhabited residential structures, more than 300 agricultural structures, more than 100 water and sanitation (WASH) structures, 200 livelihood structures, and about 100 infrastructure and other structures. Since 7 October 2023, more than 181,000 Palestinians have been affected at least once by 25 incidents of demolitions and destruction of public infrastructure during Israeli forces’ operations, in Tulkarm and Jenin. Many of these people have been affected more than once in multiple incidents.

Funding

• As of 13 August, Member States have disbursed about US$1.6 billion out of $3.42 billion (47 per cent) requested to meet the most critical needs of 2.3 million* people in Gaza and 800,000 people in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, between January and December 2024. Increased funding now will enable the humanitarian community to scale up operations as soon as conditions permit. For funding analysis, please see the Flash Appeal Financial Tracking dashboard. (*2.3 million reflects the projected population of the Gaza Strip upon issuance of the Flash Appeal in April 2024. As of July 2024, the UN estimates that about 2.1 million people remain in the Gaza Strip, and this updated number is now used for programmatic purposes.)
• During July 2024, the occupied Palestinian territory Humanitarian Fund (oPt HF) managed a total of 98 ongoing projects, totalling $81.4 million. These projects aimed to address urgent needs in the Gaza Strip (89 per cent) and the West Bank (11 per cent). The projects were strategically focused on Education, Food Security, Health, Protection, Emergency Shelter & Non-Food Items (NFI), Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene (WASH), Coordination and Support Services, Multi-Purpose Cash Assistance and Nutrition. Of these projects, 55 projects are being implemented by international non-governmental organizations (INGOs), 31 by national NGOs and 12 by UN agencies. Notably, 32 out of the 67 projects implemented by INGOs or the UN are being implemented in collaboration with national NGOs. Since 7 October, the oPt HF has mobilized over $112 million from Member States and private donors to support urgent humanitarian and life-saving programmes across the OPT. A summary of the oPt HF activities and challenges in July 2024 is available through this link and the 2023 Annual Report of the oPt HF can be accessed here. Private donations are collected directly through the oPt HF.