Occupied West Bank: Settler siege of Palestinians marks a new low

In the occupied West Bank, the UN human rights office, OHCHR, appealed on Thursday to Israeli authorities to help Palestinian families trapped in their homes by settlers for days, amid an intensifying campaign to seize their land.Key pointsThe West Bank has been under Israeli occupation since the 1967 Arab-Israeli war Israeli settlements began expanding in the occupied West Bank soon after 1967In 2005, Israel evacuated four settlements in the northern West BankThe occupied territory is central to plans for a future Palestinian state, but violent settlement expansion is a growing obstacle to a negotiated two-State solutionAccording to reports, the United States has been involved in efforts to end the siege that began on Sunday, with the US Ambassador to Israel calling for the removal of what he called “Israeli terrorists”.Three Palestinian families – around 15 people in total, including at least two children – have remained confined to their homes “in a state of terror” in the Ras al Ein area of Qusra village, south of Nablus, OHCHR said, alleging that the settlers had cut their power and water. “These criminal actions by the settlers, supported or acquiesced to by Israel, the Occup...