Warning over Intensified Settler Movements in the West Bank

Tehran, IRNA reports, citing the Palestinian Shihab News Agency, that a Palestinian analyst warned of intensified settler movements in the occupied West Bank. The analyst said the core objective of these moves is to prevent the establishment of an independent Palestinian state.

The analysis notes a rise in planned settlement-building in the West Bank, occurring alongside what it describes as ongoing consequences of the aggression against Gaza. The focus, the analyst argues, includes actions targeting Palestinian communities and land in the occupied territories as part of a broader strategy.

Attention centers on the Ibrahimi Mosque in Hebron, where the analyst highlights a long-standing restriction—the ban on the call to prayer for more than three months. This restriction is described as the longest since the 1994 massacre at the mosque, and is presented as part of a wider pattern affecting religious sites and daily life.

The analyst contends that these moves are part of a coordinated, colonial project. He asserts that armed settlers are acting with the support and direction of Itamar Ben-Gvir, the minister of internal security in the occupation government, with aims including the expulsion of Palestinians and the seizure of control over religious and ancient sites and areas categorized as “B” and “C.”

Overall, the analyst describes what is unfolding in the West Bank as a “quiet” but real and de facto annexation intended to fragment Palestinian land and hinder any future Palestinian statehood.