Tensions in the Occupied West Bank continued to escalate. In Duma, a village south of Nablus, a Palestinian was killed in an attack by Israeli settlers—the latest in a string of violent incidents amid a deteriorating security environment. Elsewhere, Israeli authorities detained at least 42 Palestinians from Gaza in Nazareth, citing their presence without official permits.

In a post on social media, Israel’s defence minister, Yoav Gallant, declared that the Israeli army would maintain its presence in key West Bank flashpoints—Jenin, Tulkarm, and Nur al-Shams—through the end of the year. The announcement underscores the government’s increasingly entrenched posture in the territory.

Overnight, Bezalel Smotrich, Israel’s far-right finance minister, approved a plan to issue tenders for more than 3,000 housing units in the highly contentious E1 corridor between Jerusalem and Ma’ale Adumim. The move, long opposed by Western governments for its potential to sever the territorial contiguity of a future Palestinian state, was hailed by Mr Smotrich as a final blow to the two-state solution. It “buries the idea of a Palestinian state,” he declared.

In a further sign of military escalation, Israel’s army chief this week signed off on the “main framework” for a full-scale ground operation in the Gaza Strip—another indication that the conflict is far from nearing resolution.