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Canada targets settlement expansion
Canada demanded an immediate halt to the expansion of Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank, saying the proliferation of illegal outposts and escalating settler violence threaten prospects for peace and regional stability.
“"These settlements are illegal under international law and undermine prospects for peace, security and stability,"”
In a statement posted on X, Canada's Foreign Ministry said, "These settlements are illegal under international law and undermine prospects for peace, security and stability," as the UN human rights office warned attacks by Israeli settlers and settlement expansion had reached an "all-time high."
The UN human rights office said settler violence and the expansion of settlements had reached an "all-time high," and the UN has repeatedly warned that increasing settler violence and continued settlement construction are worsening tensions.
Palestinian rights organizations told News.Az that more than 1,100 Palestinians have been killed in the occupied West Bank since October 2023, as Israeli military operations and settler attacks intensified alongside the war in Gaza.
UN cites deaths and attacks
The UN human rights office warned of worsening violence by Israeli settlers in the West Bank and urged international action against the killing of Palestinians and the creation of settlements, which it said had reached an "all-time high."
Ravina Shamdasani, the spokesperson for the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, said, "settlers and Israeli security forces, often acting together, have attacked local communities, assaulting families, destroying and confiscating property, and burning mosques."
The Jerusalem Post reported that Maj. Yuval Ezra, 27, and Sgt.-Maj. (res.) Benyahu Mellet, 32, were killed Friday during a confrontation near the Palestinian village of Tal, southwest of Nablus.
The Jerusalem Post also said UN figures showed 18 Palestinians have been killed in incidents linked to settler attacks so far this year, compared with 17 in the whole of 2025, while Palestinian officials said four Palestinians were killed in the broader confrontation.
Escalation, raids, and elections
Ahead of Israel’s legislative elections scheduled for 27 October 2026, the International Federation for Human Rights said Israeli authorities accelerated measures to legalize settlement outposts and establish new settlements while announcing a "large-scale counter-terrorism operation" in the northern West Bank.
“announced a “large-scale counter-terrorism operation” in the northern West Bank”
FIDH said the escalation of settler violence and settlement expansion is inseparable from the "catastrophic situation in Gaza," where Israeli military operations since 7 October 2023 caused massive civilian casualties and grave violations of international humanitarian law.
In the Reuters report carried by Al-Monitor, the Israeli security cabinet approved 1.3 billion shekels ($434 million) to establish 34 new settlements in the West Bank, and Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich called the move "historic."
Al-Jazeera Net described how, after the deadly attack carried out by groups of settlers in Tel village last Friday, the Committee to Resist the Wall and Settlements documented the establishment of 11 new colonial outposts in just three days between July 25 and 27, 2026.
