Palestinian Church Says Settler Violence Endangers Christian Community
In a letter to churches around the world, the Palestinian Presidential Higher Committee for Church Affairs said settler attacks have intensified across multiple West Bank areas, including Birzeit, Taybeh, and Ein Arik in Ramallah and al-Bireh, as well as al-Makhrour and Ash Ghurab in Bethlehem.
The committee described the assaults as ranging from physical violence and arrests to land seizures and the expansion of settlement outposts. “These are not isolated incidents,” the committee said, noting that the violence occurs under the protection of Israeli forces and amid complete impunity. The actions are viewed as part of a systematic policy aimed at changing the demographic and geographic character of the region and forcibly displacing residents.
Citing official figures, the committee stated that illegal settlers carried out over 4,723 attacks in the West Bank in 2025. The warning comes amid broader Israeli operations in the occupied Palestinian territories, including home demolitions, displacement, and military activity in Gaza, which the committee described as collective punishment and a breach of international humanitarian law.
The committee, established by presidential decree in 2012 and affiliated with the Palestine Liberation Organization, highlighted that the West Bank is home to 770,000 illegal settlers living in more than 180 settlements and 256 outposts by the end of 2024.
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