B’Tselem: “This is not what a ceasefire looks like”
[A partner of the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) and United Church of Christ through Global Ministries, B’Tselem, the Israeli Information Center on Human Rights in the Occupied Territories, issued the following statement on the intensification of violence against Palestinians in the West Bank:]
For over 15 months, Israel has been waging an all-out war on the entire Palestinian people. Ever since Israel and Hamas announced a temporary ceasefire in the Gaza Strip and a hostage and prisoner release deal three days ago, on 19 January 2024, Israel has intensified its violence against Palestinians in the West Bank.
Far from holding its fire against Palestinians, Israel’s actions demonstrate it has no intention of doing so. Instead, it is merely shifting its focus from Gaza to other areas it controls in the West Bank.
The ink had barely dried on the ceasefire agreement before the Israeli army blocked most access points to and from Palestinian villages, and all the cities in the West Bank, severely disrupting the daily lives of more than three million Palestinians: Students could not reach schools and universities, patients could not access medical treatments, and ordinary civilians could not get to their workplaces.
A series of military raids in Sabastiya, ‘Azzun, Jenin, Beit Furik and Hebron, among others, have already claimed the lives of eight Palestinians, including at least one minor. Dozens were injured and scores were taken into custody in mass arrests.
In the past two nights, a wave of settler violence has swept through the West Bank. As soldiers looked on, Israelis attacked Palestinian communities, trying to set fire to homes with occupants inside, torching cars and vandalizing property on a massive scale, in Turmusaya, al-Funduq, Sinjil, Al-Mughayyir and Jinsafut among other places. The attackers themselves have declared these pogroms were an act of revenge for the release of Palestinian prisoners as part of the deal. Settlers have also blocked major intersections across the West Bank, pelting passing Palestinian vehicles with stones.
Adding the military activity of the Israeli army in the West Bank to the war’s official objectives just two days before the Gaza ceasefire agreement took effect, speaks volumes about the Israeli government’s true intentions. Forced to stop the fighting in Gaza by the Americans and Saudis, the Israeli government is using this pause as an excuse and opportunity to ratchet up the oppression of West Bank Palestinians.
This is not what a ceasefire looks like.