The new outbreak of violence in the occupied West Bank could spiral out of control, the UN human rights chief warned on Friday.

This week, at least 18 people have been killed in the territory — in incursions by the Israeli military or attacks by Palestinians or Jewish settlers.

“These latest killings and the violence, along with the inflammatory rhetoric, serve only to drive Israelis and Palestinians deeper into an abyss,” Volker Turk said in a statement.

Click to see more

So far this year, more than 200 people have died in violence linked to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, the vast majority of them Palestinians.

Deadly violence has flared in recent days in the northern West Bank, a stronghold of Palestinian armed groups where Israel has stepped up military operations.

Turk said this week’s violence was being fuelled by strident political rhetoric and an escalation in the use of advanced military weaponry by Israel.

The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights said the sharp deterioration was having a terrible impact on both Palestinians and Israelis and called for an immediate end to the violence.

He said international human rights law required Israeli authorities to ensure all operations are planned and implemented to prevent lethal force.

Every death caused in such a context requires an effective investigation, he added.

“Israel must urgently reset its policies and actions in the occupied West Bank in line with international human rights standards, including protecting and respecting the right to life,” Turk said.

“As the occupying power, Israel also has obligations under international humanitarian law to ensure public order and safety within the occupied Palestinian Territory.”

Turk said the underlying dynamics leading to violence and the arbitrary loss of life needed to be addressed urgently and would require political will from Israel and the Palestinians as well as the international community.

“For this violence to end, the occupation must end,” he said.

“On all sides, the people with the political power know this and must instigate immediate steps to realise this.”

Israeli settlers build new outposts

Meanwhile, Israel’s national security minister urged tougher military action against Palestinians in the occupied West Bank and urged Israeli settlers to expand their presence there despite surging violence and international calls for a halt to new construction.

Itamar Ben-Gvir, a far-right member of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government, was speaking at a settler outpost — one of several the Israeli military said had been discovered across the West Bank since Thursday but were not authorised.

They would be dismantled “according to enforcement priorities”, a military statement said without elaborating.

“We have your backs, run to the hilltops, settle the land,” National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir said during his visit.

“We must launch a military operation, bring down buildings, eliminate terrorists, not one or two but dozens and hundreds and if necessary thousands,” he said.

“Because, ultimately, it is the only way we will seize this place, strengthen our hold and restore security to the residents.”

Most countries deem Jewish settlements built on land Israel seized in the 1967 Middle East war as illegal. Their expansion has for decades been among the most contentious issues between Israel, the international community and Palestinians, who say they undermine a viable future Palestinian state.

The Yedioth Ahronoth daily reported at least seven new outposts were built in the West Bank since Thursday with the government’s knowledge.

The new construction follows an announcement on Wednesday by Netanyahu of plans for 1,000 new homes in the Eli settlement.

According to the Israeli watchdog Peace Now, Eli was built in 1984 and some 4,600 settlers reside there. Palestinians in the area say they were dispossessed of their land to allow for the settlement’s expansion over the years.

The Palestinian foreign ministry condemned Israel’s new settlement projects, which it said were part of its plan to de facto annex the West Bank.

Israel is “permanently closing the door to any opportunity for a political solution to the conflict”, it said.

Israel cites biblical, historical and political ties to the West Bank as its justification for claiming the land, and says construction there follows a building permit process.

Since taking office in January, Netanyahu’s religious-nationalist coalition has approved the promotion of more than 7,000 new housing units, most deep in the West Bank. It also amended a law to clear the way for settlers to return to four settlements that had previously been evacuated.

According to the United Nations, some 700,000 settlers live in 279 settlements across the West Bank and East Jerusalem, up from 520,000 in 2012.