West Bank Casualties: UN Panel Logs 254 Airstrike Deaths

Nearly 500 Palestinians die in the West Bank each year, a rate the United Nations says is the highest since it began tracking data in 2005. The figure reflects a sharp rise in casualties from Israeli military operations and settler violence that has intensified since late 2022.

The Commission of Inquiry released its findings on Monday. It accused Israel of committing war crimes and crimes against humanity in the West Bank and Gaza. The panel also identified specific abuses by the Palestinian Authority, citing arbitrary arrests and the targeting of journalists and activists.

Aerial bombardment has become the primary driver of recent deaths. The commission recorded six Palestinian deaths from airstrikes between 2008 and October 2023. That number jumped to 254 between October 2023 and September 2026. The panel noted that strikes became more frequent after Israel launched Operation Iron Wall in January 2025. These attacks focused on refugee camps and areas around Jenin, Tulkarm, Tubas, and Nablus.

The report critiques the statements of Israeli officials regarding the conflict. It cites Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, who said in November 2023 that the West Bank contained “two million Nazis.” In January 2025, Smotrich wrote that Jenin and Nablus should “look like Jabalia.” The panel also referenced a May 2026 remark by Major General Avi Bluth, who reportedly said Israeli soldiers were “killing like we haven’t since 1967.”

The commission verified four additional cases of sexual violence against Palestinian detainees since March 2025. Two victims were from the West Bank. One case involved a male detainee at Megiddo Prison in 2025. He was allegedly blindfolded, forced to remove his lower garments, and repeatedly raped with objects during interrogation. The panel stated that guards mocked the victim and photographed him while he suffered serious injuries, including rectal bleeding, without receiving medical treatment.

The Palestinian Authority faced its own set of charges. The report accused the PA of suppressing dissent through torture and excessive force. It highlighted the October 2023 protests in Ramallah, Tubas, and Jenin, where at least five people were killed. The PA accepted responsibility for the death of a boy who was run over by a security vehicle. The panel also investigated the December 2024 killing of a journalism student in Jenin, who was shot in the neck near her home. The PA blamed “outlaws” for the death, but the commission said key witnesses were not asked to testify.

Israel’s Foreign Affairs Ministry responded to the report on Monday. It called the document “propaganda detached from reality” that aims to undermine Israel’s right to self-defense. The ministry said the report delegitimizes the Jewish state while legitimizing jihadist terrorism against its citizens.