NEW YORK: UN independent experts on Thursday accused Israel of accelerating what they described as a campaign of ethnic cleansing and annexation in the West Bank, with increased displacement of Palestinians and a surge in violence by settlers and Israeli security forces.
The experts said Palestinians were facing widespread intimidation and attacks, with entire communities “living in fear of settler terrorism rampaging across the West Bank day and night.”
“Against the backdrop of the US-Israel aggression against Iran and Lebanon, Israel is escalating ethnic cleansing and full annexation of the West Bank,” the experts said.
Since Feb. 28, most road gates across the West Bank had been closed by Israeli forces, restricting access to workplaces, schools, healthcare and humanitarian aid.
The closures have also hindered emergency services, leaving some communities cut off from ambulances and fire brigades.
The experts said thousands of Palestinian families had been forced to flee their homes due to escalating settler attacks and the destruction of infrastructure, particularly in the Jordan Valley. Some of those displaced had already been uprooted from other areas months earlier.
They also raised the alarm over reports of sexual abuse of Palestinian men, women, and children by settlers, and said violence was being fueled by inflammatory rhetoric from senior Israeli officials and what they described as widespread impunity.
The experts’ statement highlighted that settlers have targeted homes, vehicles, and livestock, vandalized crops and olive trees, and damaged water and sanitation infrastructure. Livestock have been killed or stolen, and individuals, including Israeli volunteers attempting to protect Palestinian communities, have been beaten and threatened.
Between Feb. 3-16, at least 86 settler attacks were recorded across 60 Palestinian communities, the experts said. On March 3, armed settlers accompanied by Israeli forces reportedly raided the village of Qaryut in the Nablus district, killing two Palestinians and injuring others. Ambulances were unable to reach the wounded for over an hour due to road closures, they added.
“This is an example of coordinated implementation of Israel’s annexation and ethnic cleansing policy by occupation forces and settlers: these two are birds of a feather,” the experts said.
They cited recent reports indicating that weapons and vehicles had been supplied to settler groups, which they said supported claims that Israeli authorities were relying on settlers to carry out actions on the ground.
The experts also criticized remarks by Itamar Ben-Gvir, Israel’s national security minister, that “Jews are above the law in the West Bank,” while facilitating the issuance of firearm licenses to settlers in occupied East Jerusalem.
The statement reiterated concerns over Israeli government plans to expand settlements, displace Palestinian communities, and register Palestinian land as Israeli state property.
The experts urged states to act in line with a 2024 advisory opinion by the International Court of Justice and a related UN General Assembly resolution calling for an end to the occupation.
“Tragically, states have failed to stop Israel’s crimes, emboldening its impunity and giving it carte blanche to continue its atrocities against Palestinians,” they said.
The statement was issued by Francesca Albanese, Michelle Small, and Ben Saul, among others.
