In a detailed investigation published by the Financial Times, "Israel's" widening military aggression on the occupied West Bank is revealed to mirror tactics long associated with its operations in Gaza. The report highlights how drone strikes, tank deployments, and sweeping raids, once rare in the territory, have now become routine, signaling a sharp escalation in both the scale and nature of Israeli assaults.

As violence, settler attacks, and movement restrictions intensify, Palestinians are bearing the brunt of what human rights observers are increasingly describing as the “Gazafication” of the West Bank.

The initial report from "Israel’s" military was brief and unequivocal, claiming that "the [Israeli air force] struck a terrorist cell in the area of Tammun. Details to follow.” It was all wrong. The drone strike in the hillside town in the north of the occupied West Bank killed three Palestinian cousins, aged eight, 10, and 23, as they stood just meters from Iman Bisharat’s home.

Moments later, Bisharat rushed outside to find her son Hamza’s body riddled with shrapnel. His cousin Reda’s head had been torn open. Adam, the third cousin, died in her arms.

“There was a huge boom… shrapnel everywhere,” she said. “It was like a scene from Gaza in front of me.”

The January 8 strike marked a turning point in "Israel’s" broader campaign that has brought record death tolls to the West Bank.

Return to airstrikes, tanks in the West Bank

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The occupied West Bank has seen tactics once confined to the Gaza Strip. Since June 2023, and increasingly after October 7, "Israel" resumed airstrikes using drones, helicopter gunships, and even fighter jets. Tanks have also reappeared for the first time in two decades, targeting refugee camps in Jenin, Tulkarm, and Nur Shams.

According to the UN's OCHA, Israeli forces have killed over 900 Palestinians in the West Bank since October 7, making 2023 and 2024 the deadliest years since the UN began collecting data in 2005. 

In addition to casualties, operations have razed roads and homes, displaced thousands, and imposed widespread restrictions that have disrupted life for 3.3 million Palestinians.

Israeli officials claim the campaign is necessary to dismantle militant strongholds in areas where the Palestinian Authority has lost control. But analysts like Ibrahim Dalalsha say politics also plays a role. Netanyahu’s far-right allies, Bezalel Smotrich and Itamar Ben-Gvir, have pushed for more aggression in the West Bank, moves that coincided with "Israel’s" Gaza ceasefire in January.

Legal experts warn of unlawful use of force

Human rights organizations have condemned the escalated force as disproportionate. The UN’s human rights office stated that "Israel's" actions in the West Bank, a non-combat zone, violate international law.

“There are no hostilities in the West Bank,” the UN noted. “Israel now routinely resorts to tactics and weapons developed for war, including air strikes and tanks.”

Since October 7, "Israel" has added dozens of checkpoints, pushing the number of “movement obstacles” beyond 800. Meanwhile, settler violence has surged. OCHA recorded over 2,200 settler attacks involving casualties or property damage. These incidents have uprooted families, destroyed olive harvests, and blocked Palestinians from accessing vast areas of land.

For residents like Bisharat, daily life has become paralyzing. She no longer dares travel to nearby Nablus — a once routine trip.

“Anything unpredictable can be a disaster,” she told the Financial Times. “Even going out to buy something feels like a risk where God knows what will happen.”

And home is no longer a refuge: “If they got away with killing our kids… they can get away with anything else,” she concluded by saying.