Palestinian villages in the West Bank are under sustained attack by armed Israeli settlers, with soldiers and police backing them up — grim news for residents, and a growing embarrassment for Israel's international standing.

• The village of Kusra has been besieged for over two weeks, with families sealed in their homes and cut off from food and water.
• Masked settlers torched a home, a car, and a mosque in one overnight raid; a pregnant neighbor lost her baby from the shock.
• Israeli forces show up after the attacks and detain or question the Palestinian victims, not the attackers.
• More than 1,100 Palestinians have been killed in the West Bank since October 2023, a fifth of them children.
• Knesset member Ofer Cassif was physically pushed back by soldiers when he tried to reach the trapped families.

Outlook: With Israeli elections coming in October and settler votes in play, the attacks are likely to keep escalating unless outside governments force a change.