The situation in the West Bank must be "treated as an emergency", a UN official said on Tuesday, as settler violence and recent action by Israeli authorities on settlement expansion threaten to derail the fragile peace process.
"The concern is not only the continued expansion of the settlements, but the speed and systematic manner in which new facts are being created," Ramiz Alakbarov, deputy special co-ordinator for the Middle East Peace Process, told council members.
He said significant resources have been set aside for further West Bank settlement expansion, highlighting how Israeli authorities had allocated $431 million to support the construction of 34 new settlements in mid-July.
"Israeli authorities described this decision as strengthening Israel's hold on the West Bank and preventing the establishment of a Palestinian state," he said.
Mr Alakbarov said such actions are reshaping the West Bank, weakening Palestinian governments and advancing annexation.
The West Bank has had some of its worst violence in months, with settlers storming into Palestinian communities, attacking people and property. The violence often occurs under the protection or participation of Israel’s military.
More than 1,100 Palestinians have been killed in the West Bank since the start of the Israel-Hamas war in October 2023, with 76 this year, according to the UN. Military raids have resulted in the detention of hundreds of Palestinians.
"Settler violence against Palestinian people is on the rise in a climate of impunity and that is meeting with no response from the Israeli armed forces," Jay Dharmadhikari, France's deputy UN spokesman, told the council. "This situation is a direct threat to regional stability and to the viability of the two-state solution."
China called for "swift action" to curb the violence.
"The two-state solution is the only viable path to resolving the Palestinian issue, as recognised by the international community – any hesitation, scepticism, or wavering is unacceptable," said Fu Cong, Beijing's UN representative.
Riyad Mansour, Palestine's representative to the world body, urged the council to put its words into action.
"You are the Security Council. You have responsibilities to act and to enforce international law," Mr Mansour said. "If any one party, a state, does not meet its obligation in this regard it should be held accountable, and you have tools available to you to act.
"Throughout the occupied Palestinian territory, annexation is under way. It's not an idea; it's under way, brutally and relentlessly."
Israel and the US rejected the claims that settlers were acting with impunity.
Jennifer Locetta, alternate US representative to the UN for special political affairs, highlighted the Israeli government's "condemnation of and the increased actions to counter violence in the West Bank".
"Israel has taken specific steps, such as increasing law enforcement actions, to boosting the [army's] presence, and to allocating significant financial resources to counter violence," she said.
Ms Locetta also repeated Washington's opposition to annexation of the West Bank.
Danny Danon, Israel's representative to the UN, said it was hypocritical of the council to denounce settler violence while ignoring attacks on Israelis.
"Israel is combating extremist violence in all its forms. When it comes to Israeli extremism, we are expanding our presence on the ground in Judea and Samaria," he said, referring to the biblical name for the West Bank. "Israel's comprehensive framework has led to increased enforcement against Jewish extremism."
Mr Danon also condemned the violence committed by settlers, and insisted Israel prosecutes the crimes.
"Those committing violence are a tiny fraction of the people living there. They do not represent the broader community," he said. "We are not occupier. We are not settlers. Our right to live in our land is based on our historical connection to it."
