SAFA — The United Nations has warned of a sharp increase in Israeli demolitions of Palestinian homes and property in Masafer Yatta in the southern occupied West Bank, where recent demolitions have displaced dozens of Palestinians, half of them children.

The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said Israeli authorities demolished 20 homes and other structures, including a water cistern and solar panels, in two Palestinian herding communities on Tuesday.

Combined with demolitions in a third nearby community, the Israeli actions displaced nearly 60 Palestinians, half of them children, and affected another 30 people who stay in the area seasonally, according to the UN. Many of the destroyed structures had been built with donor funding.

Masafer Yatta is home to roughly 1,200 Palestinians living across 13 communities, all of whom face pressure to leave after Israeli authorities designated the area a “firing zone” for military training.

OCHA said that pressure has intensified amid increasing Israeli settler violence against Palestinian communities following the establishment of settlement outposts in the area in recent years.

UN officials and humanitarian partners visited Masafer Yatta this week and met displaced residents receiving emergency assistance, including shelter, food, hygiene supplies and psychosocial support.

Across the occupied West Bank, about 1,500 Palestinians have been displaced by Israeli demolitions since the beginning of 2026, while more than 2,600 others have been displaced by settler violence and related restrictions on movement and access, according to the UN.

The figures mean more than 4,000 Palestinians have been displaced across the occupied West Bank this year through demolitions, settler violence and related restrictions, underscoring growing concerns over the forced displacement of Palestinian communities.