Middle East & North Africa
UN “extremely alarmed” as Israel seals the West Bank after Hebron attack: Guterres condemns record settler violence
The UN says it is “extremely alarmed” by Israel’s sweeping West Bank closures after the Hebron attack, and Guterres condemns record settler violence during the olive harvest.
The United Nations said on Friday it was “extremely alarmed” by intensifying violence in the occupied West Bank, after Israel sealed off the territory following a deadly attack on its soldiers near Hebron, according to UN News.
Secretary-General António Guterres is deeply concerned about the closures and about reports of home demolitions and possible displacement in Hebron, UN spokesperson Stéphane Dujarric told the noon briefing in New York. “Those closures severely restrict Palestinians’ freedom of movement, access to basic services and livelihoods,” he said.
What happened in Hebron
According to news reports cited by the UN, gunmen opened fire near a military checkpoint outside Hebron. Two Israeli soldiers were killed and at least five were wounded, and both attackers were killed. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu ordered Hebron sealed and pledged house-to-house raids and home demolitions, the reports said. We covered the first hours of the attack and the closure order in Hebron: Five wounded in shooting attack, as Netanyahu orders a full closure of the West Bank.
The UN described this as the fourth time in a month that Israel has imposed restrictions across the territory. Hebron’s entrances and exits were closed and the Ibrahimi Mosque was shut, so worshippers could not hold Friday prayers. The measures came at the height of the olive harvest.
UN human rights office: “collective punishment”
Mayy El Sheikh, spokesperson for the UN human rights office (OHCHR) in the occupied Palestinian territory, called the lockdown “yet another episode in a never-ending stream of suffocating measures”. She said such lockdowns follow a pattern of collective punishment whenever Palestinians commit violence against settlers or soldiers, and warned that movement restrictions are already keeping thousands of farmers away from their olive groves.
OHCHR has documented more than 160 settler attacks in the first two weeks of October 2026, including the use of live ammunition, arson, crop theft and damage to olive groves. Settlers also targeted European Union diplomats, the UN said. A recent visit by a UN envoy and 13 member states to the area is described in UN envoy and 13 member states tour Jenin as West Bank olive harvest faces settler attacks and access limits.
Guterres: protect civilians, hold perpetrators to account
Guterres condemned “the violence caused by record numbers of attacks by Israeli settlers against Palestinians in 2026”, the UN said, and reminded Israel, as the occupying power, of its duty to “protect the Palestinian population from such attacks and to hold perpetrators to account”. He called on all parties “to immediately cease all acts of violence”, to show restraint and to avoid actions that could further inflame tensions.
The UN statement gave no timetable for lifting the closures. The next test will be whether the Hebron closure and the announced raids and demolitions go ahead while the olive harvest continues.
