Since the Hamas-led attack on October 7th 2023, when 1,200 Israelis were killed, the settlers have been emboldened to expand their areas of control by pursuing a campaign of violence and forced expulsion against local Palestinian communities. What was once a fringe movement has now won support at the highest levels of the government, with their supporters holding key positions in cabinet and able to influence not only the role the military plays but also the future of this conflict.

Louis Theroux embeds himself in the West Bank, meeting prominent settlers and travelling throughout the territory to understand the consequences of their activity. And as the world focuses on Gaza, where at least 47,000 Palestinians are estimated to have been killed by Israeli forces since October 7th, “Louis discovers that the settlers are already making plans to move into that territory too.”

Louis Theroux says: “In 2010, I made a programme called The Ultra-Zionists that looked at the extreme end of the Israeli settler community in the West Bank. Since then, those same extreme settlers are even more emboldened. I’m interested in ideologues and fundamentalists of all stripes. In going back to the West Bank, I wanted to see settler expansionism up close, and the human cost it entails. It’s a story specific to a time and a place and a region, but it’s also a universal insight into tribalism and the ways in which we can blind ourselves to the humanity of those around us.”

Clare Sillery, Head of Commissioning, BBC Documentaries says: “After more than 25 years of documentary making, Louis Theroux’s appetite for tackling difficult and complex subject matters remains completely undiminished. I look forward to him bringing his humanity and curiosity to this most challenging and timely of stories.”

Louis Theroux: The Settlers is a Mindhouse production for BBC Two and BBC iPlayer, commissioned by Clare Sillery, Head of Documentary Commissioning, with Fran Baker as Commissioning Editor. The Director is Josh Baker, the Senior Producer is Sara Obeidat and the Producer is Matan Cohen, the Production Manager is Emily Wallace and the Executive Producers are Fiona Stourton and Arron Fellows. Global sales will be handled by BBC Studios Distribution.

(Image: BBC/Mindhouse Productions)