HAMILTON, Canada

The UN on Thursday highlighted escalating tensions in the occupied West Bank, warning against illegal Israeli settler violence threatening the safety of Palestinians. 

The Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) warned “that Israeli settler violence in the context of the ongoing olive harvest season is threatening people's safety and livelihoods," UN deputy spokesman Farhan Haq told a news conference.

Haq said OCHA has documented at least "32 attacks by Israeli settlers, during which 39 Palestinians harvesting olives were injured and about 600 trees and saplings were vandalized, sawed off, or stolen" since the beginning of October.

He noted that OCHA is conducting initial assessments to determine the needs of affected individuals to inform humanitarian support from the UN and its partners.

Decrying the deteriorating situation in northern Gaza, Haq said that intense hostilities and Israel's evacuation orders have led to a significant loss of access to critical water, sanitation, and hygiene facilities.

According to Haq, "water production from municipal wells is currently at zero" in areas such as Jabalya and Beit Lahya.

Despite the challenges, the UN is working to restore access to water for communities across Gaza.

"As of a week ago, they (UN partners) report that 638 cubic meters of water were being distributed in northern Gaza on a daily basis through water trucking," he said, contrasting how before October 2023, when the current hostilities began, there was 380,000 cubic meters of daily water distribution throughout all of Gaza.