Settlers, soldiers, and Israeli impunity in the West Bank

What the report says

Al Jazeera reports that violence by Israeli settlers in the occupied West Bank is increasingly intertwined with the military, making it harder to distinguish between civilian and armed state actors and, according to Palestinian residents and rights groups, contributing to a climate of impunity. The article focuses on several West Bank communities, including Kobar and Deir Jarir near Ramallah, and describes allegations that settlers wearing army uniforms or serving as reservists have attacked Palestinians, seized property and restricted access to farmland.

In Kobar, residents told Al Jazeera that a settler they call “Ghazal” repeatedly threatened farmers, fired shots, stole livestock and solar equipment, and at one point was assisted by Border Police during an attempted sheep seizure. In Deir Jarir, a Palestinian man said he was assaulted while praying near the village entrance, and the Israeli military later confirmed the suspect was an army reservist. The article also contrasts an Israeli military account of a 2026 killing in Deir Jarir with findings cited from B’Tselem, which said the shooting was carried out by a settler on reserve duty.

Al Jazeera places these incidents in a broader pattern of expanded settler participation in security roles since the war in Gaza began in October 2023. It cites Haaretz reporting that thousands of West Bank settlers were called up as reservists and Human Rights Watch criticism of increased arming of settlers through reserve service and rapid-response squads. The piece says the overlap between settlers and military structures complicates accountability and helps explain why complaints by Palestinians against soldiers are often closed without investigation, according to Yesh Din data quoted in the article.