On August 16, Pope Leo XIV appealed for an end to violence against Palestinian civilians in the occupied West Bank and urged international action toward a two-state solution. Reports describe a surge in militant settler attacks, including a siege in Qusra where settlers cut utilities before encircling homes. More than 150 UN member states recognize a Palestinian state in the Gaza Strip, West Bank, and East Jerusalem, while Israel seized the West Bank in 1967 and settlements are viewed as illegal by the UN and most governments.