UNRWA warns: The dangerous escalation in settler attacks paves the way for the de facto annexation of the West Bank

The United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) said on Wednesday that the dangerous escalation in settler attacks and settlement expansion in the West Bank could lead to the forced displacement of Palestinians and pave the way for the de facto annexation of the territory.

Roland Friedrich, Director of UNRWA Affairs in the West Bank, confirmed in a post on the X platform that the escalation of settler attacks and the expansion of settlements “have pushed vulnerable Palestinian communities to leave their lands under increasingly coercive circumstances.”

Frederick warned that “the escalation in Israeli settler violence, settlement expansion, destruction, and evictions, which have led to the forced displacement of Palestinians, pave the way for further annexation.”