As settler siege continues, Israel advances de facto West Bank annexation

As the ongoing siege by violent settlers in the West Bank continues, Israel is moving towards de facto annexation of the territory. Defence Minister Israel Katz has ordered the military to transfer responsibility for civilian law enforcement to the police, citing the military's role as "to fight Palestinian terrorism" rather than "chase the hilltop youth."

This shift mirrors the government's broader push to entrench Israeli law in the West Bank through de facto annexation. Palestinian Vice President Hussein Al Sheikh condemned the decision, calling it a "flagrant violation of international law" and a new attempt to annex Palestinian land. The police, under National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, a convicted criminal and radical settler, will now oversee law enforcement.

The siege in Qusra continues to cause food shortages and terrorize children, prompting rare criticism from US Ambassador Mike Huckabee, who referred to the perpetrators as "Israeli terrorists." However, Huckabee later praised settler leader Yisrael Gantz, who supports applying Israeli law in the West Bank, further fueling controversy within Israel over the military's inability to end the siege.