Two Palestinian families in the occupied West Bank village of Qusra, near Nablus, were confined inside their own homes by Israeli settlers from Sunday, 2026, until Israeli security forces intervened on Wednesday. The families said they had run out of food, water and electricity during the standoff, prompting human rights organisations to demand that authorities act to protect them.
By Wednesday, Israeli security forces had reportedly pulled back from the settler outpost established near the village after violent confrontations with a crowd of hardline settlers, though roughly a dozen settlers were said to remain at the site. When the Palestinian homeowners first alerted the Israeli military to their situation, footage showed the initial soldiers who arrived choosing to pray alongside the settlers rather than intervene.
How did the siege begin?
Security camera footage from the Abu Ridi family's property shows settlers dismantling an exterior wall on Sunday evening and using the stones to seal off the surrounding road. The blockade trapped seven people inside, including two young girls, while other residents of Qusra were unable to reach them. The area falls within Area B of the West Bank, meaning it is under Palestinian civil administration but Israeli security control.
Qusay Abu Ridi described the family's predicament in a Facebook post, calling the situation critical, "especially as we are completely isolated." He added a broader appeal, writing:
We are living in our own home, on our own land, and we are asking for nothing more than the right to live safely and with dignity.
Aysha Hassan, from the second besieged family, told a news agency that settlers had "tried to break the gate" of the property and "started throwing stones at us, cursing and insulting us." She said her relatives were "dying of fear, extremely terrified."
What happened when journalists and aid tried to reach the families?
On Monday, settlers physically prevented journalists from the left-leaning Israeli newspaper Haaretz from approaching the besieged properties. The reporters said their vehicle was blocked for two hours and that Israeli soldiers at the scene declined to assist them, citing a closed military zone order that was, notably, not enforced against the settlers themselves.
The following day, the Israeli human rights organisation Yesh Din sent an urgent appeal to the head of the military's Central Command, calling for troops to protect the trapped residents, dismantle the settler outpost and hold those responsible to account. Late on Tuesday, a Palestinian ambulance was finally permitted through, delivering food supplies to the families and evacuating one child for medical treatment.
How did the Israeli military respond?
Around the same time the ambulance reached the families, the Israel Defense Forces issued a statement condemning the creation of the new outpost, describing the seizure of Palestinian homes as:
illegal, reprehensible, and unacceptable activity
Early on Wednesday, the head of Central Command, Major General Avi Bluth, travelled to the site with senior officers, meeting residents and expressing what was described as "grave concern." Footage shared with journalists afterwards showed clashes between Israeli soldiers, border police and a large crowd of settlers, with security forces deploying tear gas and stun grenades. Separate footage appeared to show troops confiscating the canopy sheltering the settlers while leaving their other equipment untouched.
The IDF said in a statement:
Border Police forces evacuated the tent and are working to evacuate the civilians who were staying there. The incident is still ongoing.
The military also indicated that consequences would follow for personnel who had failed to act earlier, stating:
disciplinary action would be taken against the security personnel involved, who were documented at the site several days ago
Is this part of a wider pattern in Qusra?
Qusra's mayor, Abdel Azim Wadi, said residents had observed "a clear and sustained pattern of targeting Qusra." Last month, a newly built mosque in the village was set alight, with Hebrew-language graffiti sprayed nearby. That attack was among a series of incidents that followed a deadly escalation in the nearby village of Tal, in which six people were killed — four Palestinians and two Israeli soldiers, one of whom had worked as a security coordinator for a neighbouring settlement. Earlier coverage detailed how a shooting in Tal left four Palestinians and two Israelis dead, with Israeli and Palestinian accounts of the incident diverging sharply, and how the aftermath saw settlers reportedly torching mosques, vehicles and farmland across the West Bank in the following days.
In a separate but comparable case in July, settlers surrounded a Palestinian home in the nearby village of Jalud for more than two weeks. The owners eventually fled, and settlers have occupied the property ever since.
What does the UN say about the broader situation?
The siege in Qusra coincided with a Tuesday briefing to the UN Security Council in New York, during which the UN's Deputy Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process, Ramiz Alakbarov, warned that "the West Bank is at breaking point." He told the council:
Settler violence has reached unprecedented levels
Alakbarov presented what he termed "the sobering human toll," noting that the Nablus Governorate, where Qusra is located, had been particularly hard hit by recent violence. According to UN figures, 76 Palestinians, including 18 children, have been killed in the West Bank this year by Israeli forces or settlers. In the same period, three Israelis, including one civilian, were killed in confrontations with Palestinians and in a suspected ramming attack.
The UN has also documented that since January 2023, 127 Palestinian communities in the West Bank have experienced full or partial displacement, with 47 communities displaced entirely, affecting more than 6,390 people. In 2026 alone, roughly 3,800 Palestinians, nearly half of them children, have been displaced due to settler violence, demolitions and evictions, the organisation says.
How did Israel respond to the UN criticism?
Israel's Ambassador to the UN, Danny Danon, rejected the characterisation of settlements as an obstacle to peace during the Security Council session. He argued that Israel holds biblical, historical and legal claims to the land, and that settlements would remain and continue expanding. Danon told the council:
must understand a simple truth: we are not going anywhere
All Israeli settlements in the West Bank are considered illegal under international law, and outposts such as the one at the centre of the Qusra siege are established without official Israeli government authorisation, distinguishing them even from recognised settlements.
Key Facts
- Two Palestinian families in Qusra were besieged in their homes from Sunday, 2026, until Israeli forces moved in on Wednesday.
- Settlers destroyed a wall and blocked the surrounding road, trapping seven people, including two children.
- A Palestinian ambulance was allowed through late Tuesday to deliver food and evacuate one child for treatment.
- The UN reports 76 Palestinians and three Israelis killed in West Bank violence this year, with roughly 3,800 Palestinians displaced in 2026.
- Israel's UN Ambassador, Danny Danon, said settlements would continue to expand despite international criticism.
