Senior Palestinian official warns West Bank is on the verge of an ‘explosion’

A senior Palestinian official told AFP that Israeli settler attacks risk setting off an “explosion” in the West Bank, while urging that the response remain peaceful.

Jibril Rajoub, the secretary general of the central committee of the Palestinian Authority’s ruling Fatah faction, said he called for “peaceful confrontation” as he took part in meetings in Cairo with other Palestinian movements including the Hamas terror group.

“The terrorism carried out by the army and settlers, under the supervision of the Israeli government… is a prelude to a coming reaction and explosion,” Rajoub told AFP in Cairo.

But he said that a “peaceful, nonviolent struggle is a necessity and a strategic choice for all Palestinians.”

“Bloodshed is no longer an acceptable option,” he said, calling for “peaceful confrontation with the occupation, despite the crimes it commits.”

Settlers have carried out daily physical attacks, thefts and other attacks against Palestinians, with the violence appearing to intensify in recent weeks as extremist settlers seek to stop the Palestinian olive harvest, an annual season with cultural resonance for the community.

On Monday Israeli police arrested 11 suspects following weekend settler attacks on Palestinians, foreign diplomats and a photojournalist in the West Bank amid the olive harvest. Israel has faced growing international criticism over the surge in violence, which Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has downplayed as the work of a small number of delinquents.

The talks in Cairo came after Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas, who has ruled since 2005, delayed elections slated to start next month until September 2027.

Rajoub said the talks called for “unified political representation” with the principle of a “single authority” and “only one legitimate armed force.”

Also Monday, UN rights experts called on Israel to protect Palestinian farmers in the West Bank during the olive harvest.

“Palestinian farmers must be protected and able to access their land safely. Yet, year after year, the violence, destruction and restrictions intensify,” the experts said in a statement.

“The olive harvest should be a time when farmers can enjoy, in safety and dignity, the food and livelihoods their nature and land provide, not another season of fear, loss, violence and destruction.”

The experts urged Israel to ensure that its forces protect Palestinian farmers from settler attacks and refrain from interference with their access to land. They also urged the international community to “exercise maximum pressure to protect Palestinian civilians.”

According to the UN humanitarian agency OCHA, 178 settler attacks related to the 2025 olive harvest were recorded in the West Bank, affecting 88 Palestinian communities. More than 6,000 trees and saplings were “vandalized,” it said — nearly double the number in 2024 and the highest figure in six years.

“The olive harvest is an essential source of food, income and livelihood for thousands of Palestinian families,” the UN experts said.

“Olive trees take years to mature and can sustain families for generations. Their destruction deprives families of far more than a single harvest: it undermines local food systems, cultural practices and ways of life, as well as the right to food and the food sovereignty of Palestinian communities.”

Times of Israel staff contributed to this report.