The UN Human Rights Office reports at least 122 Palestinians killed by Israeli forces and settlers across Gaza and the West Bank in April 2026, including 22 children, eight women, two journalists and six police officers. The bulletin details airstrikes, drone attacks and raids on homes, hospitals, schools, worship sites and shelters, and highlights mounting concerns over attacks on police and humanitarian workers.
At least 122 Palestinians were killed by Israeli forces and settlers across Gaza and the occupied West Bank in April 2026, according to a monthly bulletin released by the UN Human Rights Office in the Occupied Palestinian Territory (OHCHR OPT) on 8 May 2026.
The report documented attacks on Palestinian homes, schools, places of worship, internally displaced persons (IDP) shelters, humanitarian sites, streets and vehicles. Fatalities included at least 22 children, eight women, two journalists and six police personnel, while many others were injured.
According to the report, at least 111 Palestinians, including 18 children and seven women, were killed in Gaza in April 2026 by the Israeli military amid continued airstrikes, artillery and naval shelling, drone attacks and gunfire. The UN said the Palestinian Ministry of Health recorded 824 Palestinians killed in Israeli military attacks in Gaza since the announcement of a ceasefire agreement.
Among the incidents highlighted was the killing of Al Jazeera journalist Mohamed Al Wishah on 8 April 2026 in a drone strike targeting his car near Al Nabulsi Junction in Gaza City. The UN said his death brought the number of journalists killed in Israeli attacks in Gaza to 295 since October 2023.
On 22 April 2026, an Israeli drone strike near Al Qassam Mosque in Beit Lahiya reportedly killed five Palestinians, including three boys aged between nine and 14. Two days later, shelling near Kamal Adwan Hospital killed a woman and her two children, including a four-year-old girl. On 25 April 2026, a drone strike hit a tent being used as a phone charging station in Gaza City, killing two men.
The UN rights office also raised concerns over attacks on police personnel and humanitarian workers in Gaza. On 24 April 2026, an Israeli drone strike in Al Mawasi, west of Khan Younis, hit a vehicle carrying police personnel inside an IDP encampment, killing eight people, including four police officers and four displaced civilians. OHCHR said it had documented six Israeli attacks killing 26 police personnel in Gaza since the start of 2026, warning that police officers are civilians unless directly participating in hostilities.
Humanitarian workers also came under attack. A World Health Organization contracted driver was killed on 6 April 2026 while transporting WHO staff involved in medical evacuations in Khan Younis. On 17 April 2026, two UNICEF contractors were killed in a drone strike at a water distribution point in eastern Gaza City. According to OCHA figures cited in the report, at least 593 aid workers have been killed in Israeli attacks in Gaza since October 2023.
In the occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem, Israeli security forces killed at least six Palestinians during raids, including one woman and four children. Among them was 68-year-old Sabriya Amin Shamasneh, who reportedly died following an assault by Israeli forces during a raid on her home in Jiyus on 7 April 2026. On 16 April 2026, 17-year-old Mohammad Murad Mahmoud Rayyan was shot and killed during a raid in Beit Duqqu, with the UN reporting that Israeli forces prevented an ambulance from reaching him.
On 21 April 2026 in Al Mughayyir village, an Israeli settler identified by the Israeli military as a reservist allegedly shot and killed 14-year-old Aws An Na’san and 32-year-old Jihad Abu Na’em near a school. Eyewitnesses cited by the UN said armed settlers opened fire near the boys’ school while Israeli security personnel were present at the scene.
A separate OHCHR statement said at least nine Palestinians in 2026 had been killed by settlers later identified as Israeli military reservists. The UN said thousands of settlers had been armed and enlisted into regional battalions since October 2023, while Palestinian communities increasingly reported attacks by “settlers in uniform.” The statement also cited data from Israeli rights organisation Yesh Din showing that 93.6% of investigations into settler violence between 2005 and 2025 were closed without indictments.
The report further documented forced displacement and demolitions in East Jerusalem and the Jordan Valley. In Al Bustan, Silwan, Israeli authorities demolished or compelled the demolition of at least 11 Palestinian homes and structures in April 2026, displacing at least 36 Palestinians to make way for the “King’s Garden” settler park.
OHCHR also reported restrictions and attacks targeting Muslim and Christian worshippers, including detentions at Al Aqsa Mosque compound, restrictions on access to the Church of the Holy Sepulcher during Holy Saturday celebrations, and the assault of a French nun in Jerusalem’s Old City by an Israeli settler on 28 April 2026.
According to OCHA figures cited by the UN, settler violence has displaced nearly 2,000 Palestinians from 43 communities across the occupied West Bank so far in 2026, including around 900 children.
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