Settler terror attacks in West Bank said to surge by 63% in first half of 2026

Security establishment figures show 660 ‘nationalistic’ attacks in six months, up from 405 in prior year, with increase in Palestinian casualties; attacks on Israeli forces rise by 50%

By Stav Levaton

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and ToI Staff 10 August 2026, 2:40 pm

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The number of serious incidents of “nationalistic crime” committed by extremist Jewish settlers in the West Bank surged by 63 percent during the first half of 2026 compared to the same period last year, the Kan public broadcaster reported Monday, citing security establishment figures.

Such offenses are classified by Israeli security bodies as terrorism.

According to the report, 660 settler attacks were recorded in the first six months of 2026, up from 405 during the same period in 2025.

Attacks targeting Israeli security forces also rose by 50%, with 45 such incidents recorded in the first half of 2026.

Palestinian casualties from settler violence climbed sharply as well, with 140 Palestinians wounded and six killed during the first half of the year, compared with 82 wounded and none killed during the same period last year.

The figures did not include July, when roughly 100 additional incidents of nationalist crime were recorded, according to Kan, apparently continuing the upward trend.

A Palestinian child inspects burned-out cars following an attack by extremist Israeli settlers on Palestinian homes in the village of Jalud, south of Nablus in the West Bank, August 4, 2026. (Nasser Ishtayeh/Flash90)

Settler violence has been on the rise in recent years, particularly following the Hamas-led October 7, 2023, onslaught on southern Israel.

The number of attacks by settlers against Palestinians and Israeli security forces in the West Bank rose by 27% in 2025 compared to 2024, according to data recorded by the Israel Defense Forces and Shin Bet security agency.

The attacks, which occur on a near-daily basis, largely go unchecked. Prosecutions of Jewish extremists are rare, and convictions are even rarer. Critics have accused the government, described as the most hardline in Israel’s history, of shrugging off the attacks.

In an effort to combat the growing issue, the cabinet quietly approved a plan in March that included financial sanctions against violent Israeli hilltop youth, but it, along with harsh criticism by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of the phenomenon, was not made public due to political considerations, Channel 13 reported last month.

Members of the Israeli forces stand in guard on a road as Israeli settlers march through the Palestinian village of Sarra, near the West Bank city of Nablus, July 31, 2026. (AP/Leo Correa)

During deliberations on the plan, Netanyahu reportedly referred to the violence against Palestinians in the West Bank as a “metastasizing cancer,” which, if true, would be among the premier’s harshest comments on the matter.

Meanwhile, 2025 saw a decrease in Palestinian terror attacks, including knifings, shootings, and car-rammings, continuing a downward trend in recent years.

In 2025, 57 Palestinian terror attacks were recorded by the IDF, leading to the deaths of 20 people. (In addition, two soldiers were killed in an attack carried out by a Jordanian at the Allenby Bridge Crossing in September.)

In 2024, the military counted 258 Palestinian terror attacks with 35 deaths, and in 2023, 847 attacks with 41 deaths.

The army attributed the trend to “sustained offensive activity” in areas considered to be hotspots of terrorism in the West Bank, especially the refugee camps in the north of the territory.