Humanitarian Situation Update #216 | 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 13 September.

Key Highlights

• Between 3 and 9 September, Israeli forces killed 10 Palestinians of whom three were children, and one foreign national, in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem. Additionally, a Jordanian national killed three Israeli security officers and was then shot and killed by Israeli forces.
• Israeli forces withdrew from Jenin and Tulkarm cities and refugee camps on 5-6 September, concluding a ten-day operation—the longest in the West Bank since 2002. It resulted in 36 Palestinian deaths, including eight children, 87 injuries, and at least 60 arrests. One Israeli soldier was killed during the operation.
• At least 163 Palestinian households, comprising 624 people, including 232 children, remain displaced following the recent large-scale operation in the northern West Bank. As of 8 September, about 2,400 housing units had been damaged, of them, 106 were rendered uninhabitable.
• Eighty Palestinians, including 41 children, were displaced due to Israeli settler violence and harassment, and the takeover of Palestinian property between 3 and 9 September.

Latest Developments (after 9 September)

• On 11 September, initial reports indicate that an Israeli airstrike killed five Palestinians in Tubas city, in northern West Bank.
• On 11 September, initial reports indicate that Israeli forces shot and injured a Palestinian whose vehicle hit and critically injured a member of Israeli forces in the West Bank.*

Humanitarian Developments (3-11 September)

• During the reporting period, Israeli forces killed 10 Palestinians, including three children. Israeli forces and settlers injured 59 Palestinians, including nine children. During the same period, a Jordanian national killed three* Israeli officers, after which he was shot and killed by Israeli forces at the Allenby Bridge crossing between Jordan and the West Bank. In addition, Israeli forces killed one female foreign national.
• On 3 September, Israeli forces shot and killed a 16-year-old girl in Kafr Dan, southwest of Jenin city. According to eyewitnesses and Palestinian families that were displaced, Israeli forces raided Kafr Dan and surrounded a two-storey house in the eastern part of the town, fired at it and called for the residents to come out via loudspeakers. Two families exited the house. An hour later, additional reinforcements accompanied by two bulldozers arrived at the scene. An exchange of fire ensued between Palestinians and Israeli forces in the vicinity of the house, and Israeli forces fired off-shoulder missiles. Once the exchanges of fire ceased, the bulldozers began demolishing the besieged house. According to the Palestinian Red Crescent Society (PRCS), they were called to assist an injured girl, but Israeli forces opened fire on the ambulance when they arrived. The girl was dead by the time the medical team was able to reach her. According to the girl's brother who was with her during the incident, she was shot while passing by a window inside her house. During the operation, Israeli forces shot and injured five Palestinians, including four journalists who were at the scene.
• On 3 September, Israeli forces shot and killed two Palestinians during an operation in Dhinnaba neighbourhood, east of Tulkarm. According to eyewitnesses, Israeli forces surrounded a house and called the women and children to leave through loudspeakers. At least two women and four children left the house and were forced to stand against a wall outside. Eyewitnesses reported that the two men, who were armed, refused to surrender and remained in the yard of the house. Israeli forces then forced a young boy (the nephew of one of the armed men) to go inside and urge the men to surrender, but they refused. During the two-hour standoff, an exchange of fire erupted between the besieged men and Israeli forces. Israeli forces fired two shoulder-launched missiles at the house. Eyewitnesses and relatives at the scene reported that Israeli forces took the bodies of the armed men after they were killed.
• On 5 September, an Israeli airstrike killed five Palestinians and injured three others in Tubas city during an Israeli forces’ operation in the El Far'a refugee camp. According to local sources, two Israeli airstrikes struck two cars parked in Tubas city. PRCS reported that the injured were transported to a nearby hospital. According to the Israeli military, they struck armed Palestinians who posed a threat to their forces.
• On 5 September, Israeli forces shot and killed a 16-year-old Palestinian boy and injured one other Palestinian in El Far'a refugee camp, Tubas. According to local sources, the boy was outside the camp and attempting to return home when he was shot three times in the leg. Israeli forces denied medical teams from assisting the injured boy. According to PRCS who witnessed the incident, the boy cried out "do not shoot me" and Israeli forces then ordered him to remove his clothes. When he failed to do so, Israeli forces shot the boy in the chest. PRCS then reported that after he was killed, an Israeli bulldozer dragged his body to another location within the camp, resulting in the mutilation of his body. According to UNRWA, an exchange for fire between Israeli forces and Palestinians, and the use of explosive devices by the latter was reported.
• On 6 September, Israeli forces shot and killed a female foreign national and injured a Palestinian boy on Mount Sbeih in Beita town, southeast of Nablus city. According to local sources, Palestinian villagers staged their weekly protest against the Evyatar settlement expansion, where Israeli forces fired tear gas canisters and live ammunition at the protesters. According to an eyewitness, the foreign national was shot while she was standing about 250 meters away from the demonstration. Medical sources reported that the activist was shot in the head by live ammunition and that a boy was injured in his leg by shrapnel and transferred to the hospital.
• On 8 September, a Jordanian truck driver shot and killed three Israeli officers, at the Allenby Bridge crossing which connects Jordan to the West Bank. The Jordanian man was shot and killed by Israeli forces at the scene. Following the shooting, Israeli authorities closed the Allenby Bridge crossing in both directions. According to local sources, Israeli forces physically assaulted and interrogated Palestinian and Jordanian workers who were present during the incident. Furthermore, Palestinian travellers attempting to pass through were denied access and forced to leave the area. The Allenby Bridge was reopened to travellers later that day.
• Between 7 October 2023 and 9 September, 669* 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 652* killed by Israeli forces, 12* by Israeli settlers, and seven where it remains unknown whether the perpetrators were Israeli forces or settlers. In the same period, 57 Israeli airstrikes have killed 156 Palestinians and injured 57 others. By contrast, six Palestinians were killed in airstrikes in 2023 (up till October) and none in the preceding 3 years. During the same period, 22 Israelis, including 15 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 seven Palestinian perpetrators.

Humanitarian Needs and Responses to Israeli Operation in Northern West Bank

• Between 5 and 6 September, Israeli forces withdrew from Jenin and Tulkarm, including their refugee camps, following a ten-day large-scale operation, during which Israeli forces used lethal, war-like tactics that raised concerns over excessive use of force. On 7 September, OCHA, UNRWA, and humanitarian partners initiated an inter-cluster needs assessments in Jenin and Tulkarm governorates to assess the humanitarian impact of the operation.
  • In Kafr Dan, Jenin refugee camp, and on the eastern side of Jenin, the operation resulted in 19 Palestinian fatalities, 58 injuries, and at least 44 Palestinians arrested, along with significant damage to civilian infrastructure, residential, and livelihood shelters. The operation led to the internal displacement of over 1,000 Palestinian families. Most of these displaced have since returned, however at least 74 households, comprising 297 people, including 102 children, remain displaced from 45 houses, which are now uninhabitable. As of 8 September, at least 1,900 housing units had been damaged. Approximately 25 kilometres (70 per cent) of the city’s roads and the underlying water and sewage networks were bulldozed, severely impacting the safety of movement and access to essential services of water, sanitation, healthcare, education, and markets. As a result, since 28 August, water has been cut to approximately 35,000 residents of the camp and its surrounding neighbourhoods, who have also experienced sewage overflows.
  • In Tulkarm and Nur Shams refugee camps, the operation led to seven Palestinian fatalities, and 14 injuries, and extensive damage to infrastructure and residential shelters. Over 400 housing units had been damaged in and around the two camps. Of them, 61 were rendered uninhabitable, displacing a total of 89 households, comprising 327 people, including 123 children. More than 2.6 kilometres of the water and sewage networks in the camps were bulldozed, severely impacting the safety of movement and access to essential services of water, sanitation, healthcare, education, and markets. As a result, since 28 August, water has been cut to approximately 33,000 residents of the camp and its surrounding neighbourhoods, who have also experienced sewage overflows.
• Humanitarian partners, including PRCS, UNRWA, and the Ministry of Social Development (MoSD), have been responding to the operation's aftermath. They have distributed food parcels and water bottles* to affected populations and are coordinating with OCHA and other partners to assess needs and deliver additional assistance. On a related note, UNRWA, and PRCS, in cooperation with MoSD, initiated a distribution process aiming to reach 1,500 families in Jenin. Meanwhile, in Tulkarm, the World Food Program (WFP), in coordination with UNRWA and MoSD, distributed one-time cash assistance of 1,000 NIS to 2,300 families in Tulkarm refugee camps. Efforts include offering mental health and psychosocial support services (MHPSS), supporting local water authorities, and supplying educational materials. The WASH cluster, in collaboration with UNRWA, and the Palestinian Water Authority, has been coordinating urgent interventions in Jenin and Tulkarm, including water trucking, hygiene kit distribution, installing PE tanks, setting up water distribution points, providing water pipes, bottled drinking water, and sewage vacuuming. The Shelter Cluster, in coordination with OCHA and UNRWA, is working closely with Cash Working Group partners to provide necessary assistance for both refugees and non-refugees, including Emergency Multi-Purpose Cash Assistance (EMPCA) These efforts will continue for the next 2-3 weeks.
• During the Israeli forces’ wide-scale operation in the northern West Bank, access to hospitals and medical facilities was severely restricted. In Jenin, Israeli forces surrounded both Jenin Governmental Hospital and Ibn Sina Hospital, blocking ambulances and hindering medical teams. In Tulkarm, medical teams were unable to reach casualties in Nur Shams refugee camp. Similarly, in Tubas, restricted access following an airstrike hampered medical assistance, and a damaged generator caused a temporary power outage across the camp. PRCS has expressed deep concern over the shrinking humanitarian space, particularly in Jenin and Jenin refugee camp. According to PRCS, Israeli forces have directly targeted their ambulances, injuring two Emergency Medical Team (EMT) members and a volunteer doctor. These obstructions have hindered the delivery of essential supplies and medical services, worsening conditions for civilians. The PRCS urges the international community to ensure adherence to international humanitarian law and address the escalating humanitarian crisis.

Settler-related Violence and Displacement

• During the reporting period, Israeli settlers perpetrated 43 attacks against Palestinians, resulting in one fatality and 10 injuries, and damage to property. Palestinians perpetrated two attacks against settlers in this period, resulting in one injury. Between 7 October 2023 and 9 September 2024, OCHA recorded about 1,350 attacks by Israeli settlers against Palestinians, of which about 130 led to Palestinian fatalities and injuries, about 1,080 led to damage to Palestinian property, and over 140 led to both casualties and property damage. During the reporting period, at least 17 Palestinian households comprising at least 80 people, including 41 children, were displaced due to Israeli settler violence and harassment, and the takeover of Palestinian property. Since 7 October 2023, 276 Palestinians households comprising 1,627 people, including 794 children, have been displaced in the context of incidents related to Israeli settlers.
• The following are some of the key incidents documented by OCHA during the reporting period:
  • On 3 September, eight Palestinian Bedouin herders including a woman from the Baryet Hizma community, located on the eastern outskirts of Hizma village, were forcibly displaced due to escalating violence by Israeli settlers. Since the establishment of a new Israeli settler outpost on 8 October, which was constructed on the remains of a Palestinian residential structure demolished by Israeli forces, the community has reported an increase in settler-related violence. Video footage shows armed Israeli settlers harassing Palestinian residents daily, including firing live ammunition, burning vehicles, and damaging property. On 1 August, due to intensified nightly settler attacks, the community began limiting their presence to the hours between 17:00 and 21:00. On 23 August, Israeli settlers launched a violent attack; ransacking homes, burning one residential structure, damaging, and stealing property. In addition, settlers from the outpost twice placed earth mounds at the entrance of the community, preventing access. The families did not dismantle their shelters and left all their structures behind in hope of being able to return to their location.
  • On 5 September, two Palestinian Bedouin households, comprising 20 people, including eight children and seven women were displaced from the Ein al Hilwa–Wadi al Faw, Tubas governorate. On 4 September, armed Israeli settlers forcibly entered the community with their livestock, threatening the families at gunpoint and demanding they leave. The settlers also attacked the families, using pepper spray, which injured two men. Hours later, Israeli police arrived, detained one of the Palestinian men and a foreign activist, confiscating their mobile phones and releasing them later that night. While the families were relocating, Israeli forces physically assaulted and injured two Palestinians who were helping the families relocate to Khirbet ‘Atuf, after which they detained one of the men and transported him to a military base, where he was later released.
  • On 6 September, Israeli forces shot and killed a 13-year-old Palestinian girl in Qaryut village, south of Nablus city. According to local sources, Israeli settlers believed to be from Shilo settlement, escorted by Israeli forces, attacked the village by throwing stones and attempting to burn houses. Palestinian villagers responded by throwing stones at the settlers, and Israeli forces responded by firing live ammunition at them. The 13-year-old girl was shot and killed inside her house, which was approximately 150 meters away from where the confrontations were taking place. PRCS reported that it responded to three casualties, the girl who was shot with live ammunition in the chest, one Palestinian man who was injured by live ammunition and one who was physically assaulted. Additionally, Israeli settlers burned hundreds of olive trees on a space of about 20 dunums belonging to villagers. The Village Council reported that they are unable to access these burned lands to assess the damage and are in the process of identifying the damages to the houses.
  • On 7 September, Israeli settlers believed to be from Evyatar injured four Palestinians, including one elderly man in Beita town, southeast of Nablus. According to the municipality and the affected families, a group of masked Israeli settlers threw stones at two houses in the town. One group broke into one house, threw stones, and injured a 60-year-old woman, while others pepper sprayed a 68-year-old man and then hit him with a stone. Another Israeli settler assaulted a Palestinian woman, injuring her head and face. The settlers broke the windows of four vehicles and caused external damage to one car. One of the affected families reported that the stones thrown at their house broke three windows.
  • On 7 September, Israeli settlers physically assaulted and injured a Palestinian man near At Tuwani, Hebron governorate. The Palestinian, the Head of the Susiya Council, was driving on Road 316 when three settlers driving a vehicle, forced him to stop and assaulted him with the butt of a gun, while telling him that they knew who he was. The settlers left the man with fractures, but he managed to drive himself to the nearest hospital.
  • On 8 September, Palestinians threw stones and injured an Israeli female settler while she was traveling near Masu'a settlement on Road 90, Jericho governorate. The stones also damaged her vehicle.

Demolitions

• During the reporting period, at least 17 Palestinian households comprising at least 80 people, including 41 children, were displaced due to Israeli settler violence and harassment, and the takeover of Palestinian property. Since 7 October 2023, 276 Palestinians households comprising 1,627 people, including 794 children, have been displaced in the context of incidents related to Israeli settlers.
• Between 3 and 9 September, Israeli authorities demolished, destroyed, or forced the demolition of 38 Palestinian-owned structures. Two houses were bulldozed in an operation carried out by Israeli forces in Kafr Dan village (Jenin), which displaced 14 people, including seven children. The remaining 36 structures included a forced self-demolition in East Jerusalem and 35 demolitions in Area C due to the lack of Israeli-issued building permits, which are almost impossible to obtain. A total of 42 people, including 24 children, were displaced.
• On 3 September, Israeli forces demolished six structures, including three residential buildings, two livelihood buildings, and one WASH structure in Area C in the village of Duma, south of Nablus. As a result, two households, comprising 15 people, including nine children, were displaced. These families originated from the Ein ar Rashash community and had previously been displaced. This is the third demolition affecting these families within Duma village in less than six months.
• On 5 September, the Israeli Civil Administration, along with Israeli forces, demolished an inhabited residential building and a water cistern, citing a lack of an Israeli-issued permit in Qalqas community (Area C) near Hebron city. As a result, one family comprising eight people, including four children were displaced for the second time. The first displacement took place on 11 July 2024. The new structure was built near the old house that was demolished previously. No written demolition orders were handed to the owners prior to the demolition.
• Between 7 October 2023 and 9 September 2024, Israeli authorities demolished, confiscated, or forced the demolition of 1,598 Palestinian structures across the West Bank, displacing more than 4,023 Palestinians, including about 1,689 children, which is more than double compared with the same period before 7 October, where about 1,370 Palestinians were displaced, including 640 children. The demolitions after 7 October include over 500 inhabited structures, more than 300 agricultural structures, more than 100 water, sanitation and hygiene structures, and 200 livelihood structures.

Funding

• As of 11 September, 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. 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 August 2024, the occupied Palestinian territory Humanitarian Fund (oPt HF) managed a total of 93 ongoing projects, totalling U$79.7 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 and non-food items, water, sanitation, and hygiene, coordination and support services, multi-purpose cash assistance and nutrition.
• Of these projects, 52 projects are being implemented by international non-governmental organizations, 29 by national NGOs and 12 by UN agencies. Notably, 32 out of the 64 projects implemented by INGOs or the UN are being implemented in collaboration with national NGOs.
• Monthly updates, annual reports, and a list of all funded projects per year, are available on the oPt Humanitarian Fund webpage, under the financing section.

* Asterisks indicate that a figure, sentence, or section has been rectified, added, or retracted after the initial publication of this update.