• Press Release

Violence spirals in Israel and Occupied Palestinian Territories

October 13, 2015

An upsurge of violence in the Occupied Palestinian Territories (OPT) and in Israel since October 1 has seen at least 27 Palestinians and seven Israelis killed in recent days. Palestinians have carried out a number of attacks on Israelis in Israel and the OPT, killing six civilians and one off-duty soldier and injuring others. Israeli forces have used excessive, sometimes lethal, force against Palestinian demonstrators, injuring hundreds with live ammunition and rubber-coated metal bullets, and have failed to protect Palestinian civilians from a wave of settler attacks.

A delegation of Amnesty International researchers is on the ground in the West Bank and available for interviews about the ongoing violence.

“We are seeing a dangerous pattern of deliberate attacks on civilians and unlawful killings. All unlawful killings and arbitrary and abusive force must stop immediately. All such violations must be effectively investigated and perpetrators must be held accountable. Without justice and accountability, this downward spiral of bloodshed will continue,” said Philip Luther, Director of the Middle East and North Africa Program at Amnesty International.

“Israeli forces have used excessive force on a large scale and intensified restriction on movement and have vowed to increase illegal punishments such as home demolitions. Security measures must respect international law. Collective punishment of the Palestinian population can never be justified.”