The arrests come as Israeli forces have dismantled yet another Palestinian encampment challenging the occupation of the West Bank. In what appears to be a growing strategy, Palestinian activists established a new outpost called “Al Manatir” to protect their land from expanding settlement growth. Israeli forces and settlers moved in, firing live ammunition and arresting 10 people. It was the third Palestinian encampment to be established — and removed — in the occupied West Bank over the past month. The protest encampment follows the conclusions of a U.N. Human Rights Council inquiry reaffirming the settlements’ illegality and calling for their complete dismantlement. Panel chair Christine Chanet said Israel’s leadership has knowingly violated international law by continuing the settlements’ growth.

Christine Chanet: “Israel must — that’s our first recommendation — must cease settlement activities and provide adequate, prompt and effective remedies to the victims of violation of human rights. You will see in our report — I think it’s the first time that you will find an historical background, very exhaustive, of all the settlements enterprise. So the governments of Israel are openly, sometimes not so openly in a international stage, support the settlements, but they have the full control of the planification of the settlements.”