Dozens of Palestinian families across the West Bank say Israeli soldiers are systematically looting their homes during nightly raids, stealing cash, jewellery, electronics, even children’s toys and piggy banks, amid widespread military incursions.

One of the most alarming incidents occurred on 1 July in the town of Silat Al-Harithiya, west of Jenin, where the home of Dr Ghassan Al-Zioud was stormed by some 30 Israeli soldiers before dawn. After detaining the family in a room for two hours, the soldiers allegedly ransacked the house, smashing appliances and personal belongings before making off with over 80,000 shekels in cash and gold jewellery. Al-Zioud, who attempted to report the incident through the Palestinian liaison office, believes theft was the raid’s true motive.

Such accounts are not isolated. In nearby Ya’bad, the local municipality documented the looting of nearly 150 homes, mainly during a large-scale Israeli raid on 25 June. Ya’bad’s mayor, Amjad Atatrah, said his office received more than 100 complaints in a single day, residents reported missing money, phones, watches, computers, and even children’s birthday gifts. Many of the stolen amounts ranged from a few hundred to over 10,000 shekels.

The mayor stressed that these raids showed little resemblance to legitimate security operations. “Soldiers were going house to house, destroying furniture and taking whatever they could find of value,” he said. “It was looting, not searching.”

Residents say the crisis is compounded by their inability to use banks due to the ongoing cash liquidity shortage, forcing them to keep their savings at home, making them vulnerable targets during raids.

The Jerusalem Legal Aid Center has begun collecting affidavits and documented testimonies to pursue legal action. According to its director, Saher Sarsour, the nature of these incidents has shifted from official confiscations to untraceable theft. “Soldiers no longer leave documentation of what they take,” he said. “We’ve seen everything from electronics to piggy banks being stolen.”

Sarsour confirmed that the largest number of documented thefts have come from Jenin, Nablus, and Tulkarm—areas under near-constant military siege for months. Legal action is being prepared for submission to Israeli courts, although the prospects of restitution remain uncertain.