{"id":308231,"date":"2025-11-24T12:00:15","date_gmt":"2025-11-24T12:00:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/?p=308231"},"modified":"2025-11-22T06:29:40","modified_gmt":"2025-11-22T06:29:40","slug":"west-bank-israel-emptying-refugee-camps-a-crime-against-humanity","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/2025\/11\/west-bank-israel-emptying-refugee-camps-a-crime-against-humanity\/","title":{"rendered":"West Bank: Israel Emptying Refugee Camps a Crime against Humanity"},"content":{"rendered":"<div id=\"attachment_308232\" style=\"width: 510px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/west-bank-genocide-1.webp\" ><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-308232\" class=\"wp-image-308232\" src=\"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/west-bank-genocide-1.webp\" alt=\"\" width=\"500\" height=\"334\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/west-bank-genocide-1.webp 946w, https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/west-bank-genocide-1-300x200.webp 300w, https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/west-bank-genocide-1-768x512.webp 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 500px) 100vw, 500px\" \/><\/a><p id=\"caption-attachment-308232\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Women carry children as Israeli forces forcibly displace them from Nur Shams refugee camp in the northern West Bank, with Israeli soldiers looking on, one with his weapon raised, on 10 Feb 2025. \u00a9 2025 Wahaj Bani Moufleh<\/p><\/div>\n<blockquote><p>20 Nov 2025 &#8211; Tens<em> of Thousands of Palestinians Forcibly Displaced in Early 2025 Denied Return<\/em><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<ul>\n<li>The Israeli government\u2019s forced displacement of the populations of three West Bank <span class=\"onomasticon onomasticon-cursor-default\" tabindex=\"0\" title=\"refugee\" data-tooltip=\"Generally, a refugee is a person who has been forced to flee their country because of persecution, war, or violence. Under the 1951 Refugee Convention, a refugee is someone who is unable or unwilling to return to their home country because of a well-founded fear of persecution for reasons of race, religion, nationality, or political opinion. Under customary international law, governments are prohibited from forcibly returning refugees to their home country if it would place them in danger.\" aria-label=\"Explain glossary term refugee\" data-once=\"enable_tooltips\">refugee<\/span> camps in January and February 2025 amount to <span class=\"onomasticon onomasticon-cursor-default\" tabindex=\"0\" title=\"war crimes\" data-tooltip=\"War crimes are serious violations of international humanitarian law committed by individuals with criminal intent. Criminal intent means the violation was carried out deliberately or recklessly. Individuals who order, assist, and aid and abet offenses are also responsible for war crimes.\" aria-label=\"Explain glossary term war crimes\" data-once=\"enable_tooltips\">war crimes<\/span> and <span class=\"onomasticon onomasticon-cursor-default\" tabindex=\"0\" title=\"crimes against humanity\" data-tooltip=\"Crimes against humanity are certain crimes (for example murder, torture, deportation or apartheid) committed by members of government forces or a non-state armed group that are knowingly committed as part of a widespread or systematic attack on a specific civilian population. Widespread could mean many attacks or one major attack. Systematic means the attack was well planned by those who carried it out.\" aria-label=\"Explain glossary term crimes against humanity\" data-once=\"enable_tooltips\">crimes against humanity<\/span>.<\/li>\n<li>The Geneva Conventions prohibit displacement of civilians from occupied territory except temporarily for imperative military reasons or the population\u2019s security. Displaced civilians are entitled to protection, accommodation, and to return as soon as hostilities in the vicinity cease.<\/li>\n<li>Senior Israeli officials, including Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Israel Katz, should be investigated for the <span class=\"onomasticon onomasticon-cursor-default\" tabindex=\"0\" title=\"refugee\" data-tooltip=\"Generally, a refugee is a person who has been forced to flee their country because of persecution, war, or violence. Under the 1951 Refugee Convention, a refugee is someone who is unable or unwilling to return to their home country because of a well-founded fear of persecution for reasons of race, religion, nationality, or political opinion. Under customary international law, governments are prohibited from forcibly returning refugees to their home country if it would place them in danger.\" aria-label=\"Explain glossary term refugee\" data-once=\"enable_tooltips\">refugee<\/span> camp operations and appropriately prosecuted for <span class=\"onomasticon onomasticon-cursor-default\" tabindex=\"0\" title=\"war crimes\" data-tooltip=\"War crimes are serious violations of international humanitarian law committed by individuals with criminal intent. Criminal intent means the violation was carried out deliberately or recklessly. Individuals who order, assist, and aid and abet offenses are also responsible for war crimes.\" aria-label=\"Explain glossary term war crimes\" data-once=\"enable_tooltips\">war crimes<\/span> and <span class=\"onomasticon onomasticon-cursor-default\" tabindex=\"0\" title=\"crimes against humanity\" data-tooltip=\"Crimes against humanity are certain crimes (for example murder, torture, deportation or apartheid) committed by members of government forces or a non-state armed group that are knowingly committed as part of a widespread or systematic attack on a specific civilian population. Widespread could mean many attacks or one major attack. Systematic means the attack was well planned by those who carried it out.\" aria-label=\"Explain glossary term crimes against humanity\" data-once=\"enable_tooltips\">crimes against humanity<\/span>. Governments should impose targeted sanctions and take other urgent action to press Israeli authorities to end their repressive policies.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>(Jerusalem) \u2013 The <a href=\"https:\/\/www.hrw.org\/middle-east\/north-africa\/israel\/palestine\"  target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Israeli<\/a> government\u2019s forced displacement of the populations of three West Bank <span class=\"onomasticon onomasticon-cursor-default\" tabindex=\"0\" title=\"refugee\" data-tooltip=\"Generally, a refugee is a person who has been forced to flee their country because of persecution, war, or violence. Under the 1951 Refugee Convention, a refugee is someone who is unable or unwilling to return to their home country because of a well-founded fear of persecution for reasons of race, religion, nationality, or political opinion. Under customary international law, governments are prohibited from forcibly returning refugees to their home country if it would place them in danger.\" aria-label=\"Explain glossary term refugee\" data-once=\"enable_tooltips\">refugee<\/span> camps in January and February 2025 amount to <span class=\"onomasticon onomasticon-cursor-default\" tabindex=\"0\" title=\"war crimes\" data-tooltip=\"War crimes are serious violations of international humanitarian law committed by individuals with criminal intent. Criminal intent means the violation was carried out deliberately or recklessly. Individuals who order, assist, and aid and abet offenses are also responsible for war crimes.\" aria-label=\"Explain glossary term war crimes\" data-once=\"enable_tooltips\">war crimes<\/span> and <span class=\"onomasticon onomasticon-cursor-default\" tabindex=\"0\" title=\"crimes against humanity\" data-tooltip=\"Crimes against humanity are certain crimes (for example murder, torture, deportation or apartheid) committed by members of government forces or a non-state armed group that are knowingly committed as part of a widespread or systematic attack on a specific civilian population. Widespread could mean many attacks or one major attack. Systematic means the attack was well planned by those who carried it out.\" aria-label=\"Explain glossary term crimes against humanity\" data-once=\"enable_tooltips\">crimes against humanity<\/span>, Human Rights Watch said in a report released today. The <a href=\"https:\/\/www.ochaopt.org\/content\/west-bank-monthly-snapshot-casualties-property-damage-and-displacement-august-2025\" class=\"ext\"  target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" data-extlink=\"\">32,000 people<\/a> reportedly removed have not been permitted to return to their homes, many of which Israel forces have deliberately demolished.<\/p>\n<p>The 105-page report, \u201c<a href=\"https:\/\/www.hrw.org\/node\/392462\"  target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">\u2018All My Dreams Have Been Erased\u2019: Israel\u2019s Forced Displacement of Palestinians in the West Bank<\/a>,\u201d details \u201cOperation Iron Wall,\u201d an Israeli military operation across Jenin, Tulkarem, and Nur Shams <span class=\"onomasticon onomasticon-cursor-default\" tabindex=\"0\" title=\"refugee\" data-tooltip=\"Generally, a refugee is a person who has been forced to flee their country because of persecution, war, or violence. Under the 1951 Refugee Convention, a refugee is someone who is unable or unwilling to return to their home country because of a well-founded fear of persecution for reasons of race, religion, nationality, or political opinion. Under customary international law, governments are prohibited from forcibly returning refugees to their home country if it would place them in danger.\" aria-label=\"Explain glossary term refugee\" data-once=\"enable_tooltips\">refugee<\/span> camps that began on January 21, 2025, days after a temporary ceasefire was announced in Gaza. Israeli forces issued abrupt orders to civilians to leave their homes, including with loudspeakers mounted on drones. Witnesses said soldiers moved methodically through the camps, storming homes, ransacking properties, interrogating residents, and eventually forcing all families out.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIsraeli authorities in early 2025 forcibly removed 32,000 Palestinians from their homes in West Bank <span class=\"onomasticon onomasticon-cursor-default\" tabindex=\"0\" title=\"refugee\" data-tooltip=\"Generally, a refugee is a person who has been forced to flee their country because of persecution, war, or violence. Under the 1951 Refugee Convention, a refugee is someone who is unable or unwilling to return to their home country because of a well-founded fear of persecution for reasons of race, religion, nationality, or political opinion. Under customary international law, governments are prohibited from forcibly returning refugees to their home country if it would place them in danger.\" aria-label=\"Explain glossary term refugee\" data-once=\"enable_tooltips\">refugee<\/span> camps without regard to international legal protections and have not permitted them to return,\u201d said <a href=\"https:\/\/www.hrw.org\/about\/people\/nadia-hardman\"  target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Nadia Hardman<\/a>, senior <span class=\"onomasticon onomasticon-cursor-default\" tabindex=\"0\" title=\"refugee\" data-tooltip=\"Generally, a refugee is a person who has been forced to flee their country because of persecution, war, or violence. Under the 1951 Refugee Convention, a refugee is someone who is unable or unwilling to return to their home country because of a well-founded fear of persecution for reasons of race, religion, nationality, or political opinion. Under customary international law, governments are prohibited from forcibly returning refugees to their home country if it would place them in danger.\" aria-label=\"Explain glossary term refugee\" data-once=\"enable_tooltips\">refugee<\/span> and migrant rights researcher at Human Rights Watch. \u201cWith global attention focused on Gaza, Israeli forces have carried out <span class=\"onomasticon onomasticon-cursor-default\" tabindex=\"0\" title=\"war crimes\" data-tooltip=\"War crimes are serious violations of international humanitarian law committed by individuals with criminal intent. Criminal intent means the violation was carried out deliberately or recklessly. Individuals who order, assist, and aid and abet offenses are also responsible for war crimes.\" aria-label=\"Explain glossary term war crimes\" data-once=\"enable_tooltips\">war crimes<\/span>, <span class=\"onomasticon onomasticon-cursor-default\" tabindex=\"0\" title=\"crimes against humanity\" data-tooltip=\"Crimes against humanity are certain crimes (for example murder, torture, deportation or apartheid) committed by members of government forces or a non-state armed group that are knowingly committed as part of a widespread or systematic attack on a specific civilian population. Widespread could mean many attacks or one major attack. Systematic means the attack was well planned by those who carried it out.\" aria-label=\"Explain glossary term crimes against humanity\" data-once=\"enable_tooltips\">crimes against humanity<\/span>, and ethnic cleansing in the West Bank that should be investigated and prosecuted.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Human Rights Watch interviewed 31 displaced Palestinian refugees from the three camps and analyzed satellite imagery and Israeli military demolition orders confirming the widespread destruction. Researchers also analyzed and verified videos and photographs of the Israeli military operations.<\/p>\n<p>On January 21, Israeli forces <a href=\"https:\/\/www.bbc.com\/news\/articles\/ckg750yzdr8o\" class=\"ext\"  target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" data-extlink=\"\">stormed<\/a> Jenin <span class=\"onomasticon onomasticon-cursor-default\" tabindex=\"0\" title=\"refugee\" data-tooltip=\"Generally, a refugee is a person who has been forced to flee their country because of persecution, war, or violence. Under the 1951 Refugee Convention, a refugee is someone who is unable or unwilling to return to their home country because of a well-founded fear of persecution for reasons of race, religion, nationality, or political opinion. Under customary international law, governments are prohibited from forcibly returning refugees to their home country if it would place them in danger.\" aria-label=\"Explain glossary term refugee\" data-once=\"enable_tooltips\">refugee<\/span> camp, deploying Apache helicopters, drones, bulldozers, and armored vehicles to support hundreds of ground troops who forced people from their homes. Residents told Human Rights Watch they saw bulldozers demolishing buildings as they were being expelled. Similar operations took place in <a href=\"https:\/\/www.france24.com\/en\/middle-east\/20250203-israeli-army-operation-in-west-bank-s-tulkarm-like-a-smaller-scale-gaza\" class=\"ext\"  target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" data-extlink=\"\">Tulkarem<\/a> <span class=\"onomasticon onomasticon-cursor-default\" tabindex=\"0\" title=\"refugee\" data-tooltip=\"Generally, a refugee is a person who has been forced to flee their country because of persecution, war, or violence. Under the 1951 Refugee Convention, a refugee is someone who is unable or unwilling to return to their home country because of a well-founded fear of persecution for reasons of race, religion, nationality, or political opinion. Under customary international law, governments are prohibited from forcibly returning refugees to their home country if it would place them in danger.\" aria-label=\"Explain glossary term refugee\" data-once=\"enable_tooltips\">refugee<\/span> camp on January 27 and in nearby <a href=\"https:\/\/www.aljazeera.com\/news\/2025\/2\/12\/israeli-military-orders-evacuation-of-west-banks-nur-shams-camp\" class=\"ext\"  target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" data-extlink=\"\">Nur Shams<\/a> camp on February 9.<\/p>\n<p>The Israeli military provided no shelter or humanitarian assistance to displaced residents. Many sought shelter in the crowded homes of relatives or friends, or turned to mosques, schools, and charities.<\/p>\n<p>A 54-year-old woman said that Israeli soldiers \u201cwere yelling and throwing things everywhere\u2026. It was like a movie scene \u2013 some had masks and they were carrying all kinds of weapons. One of the soldiers said, \u2018You don\u2019t have a house here anymore. You need to leave.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Since the raids, Israeli authorities have denied residents the right to return to the camps, even with no active military operations in the vicinity. Israeli soldiers have fired upon people trying to reach their homes, and only a few have been allowed to collect their belongings. The military has bulldozed, razed, and cleared spaces for apparently wider access routes inside the camps, and have blocked all entrances.<\/p>\n<p>Human Rights Watch analysis of satellite imagery found that six months later, more than 850 homes and other buildings had been destroyed or heavily damaged across the three camps. The assessment focused only on areas of mass destruction that included buildings destroyed and severely damaged, often due to the widening of alleys and roads in the densely built camps.<\/p>\n<div class=\"embed embedded-entity embedded-entity-type-node embedded-entity-bundle-image-slider embedded-entity-viewmode-embeddable\">\n<div class=\"hrw-image-slider\" dir=\"ltr\" lang=\"en\">\n<div class=\"container-full max-w-full px-6 lg:px-8\">\n<figure class=\"image-slider-block\">\n<div class=\"image-slider juxtapose juxtapose-0\" data-startingposition=\"50\" data-showlabels=\"true\" data-showcredits=\"true\" data-animate=\"true\" data-mode=\"horizontal\">\n<div class=\"jx-slider\">\n<div class=\"jx-image jx-left\">\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/www.hrw.org\/sites\/default\/files\/media_2025\/11\/202511mena_ip_westbank_nursham-20241410-BEFORE.svg\" alt=\"satellite image\" \/><\/p>\n<div class=\"jx-label\" style=\"text-align: center;\" tabindex=\"0\"><strong>October 14, 2024<\/strong><\/div>\n<div tabindex=\"0\"><\/div>\n<div tabindex=\"0\"><\/div>\n<div tabindex=\"0\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"jx-image jx-right\">\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/www.hrw.org\/sites\/default\/files\/media_2025\/11\/202511mena_ip_westbank_nursham-20252407-AFTER.svg\" alt=\"satellite image\" \/><\/p>\n<div class=\"jx-label\" style=\"text-align: center;\" tabindex=\"0\"><strong>July 24, 2025<\/strong><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><a href=\"https:\/\/juxtapose.knightlab.com\" class=\"jx-knightlab\"  target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span class=\"juxtapose-name\">JuxtaposeJS\u00a0 <\/span><\/a><strong>October 14, 2024: \u00a9 2025 Planet Labs PBC. <\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div><figcaption class=\"figure-info mt-1 mb-8\">\n<div class=\"figure-caption font-serif text-gray-600 text-sm lg:text-base leading-snug\">\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\">Satellite imagery recorded before and after the Israeli military raided Nur Shams refugee camp in February 2025 shows destruction within the refugee camp after six months of Israeli military operations. Before image: October 14, 2024 \u00a9 2025 Planet Labs PBC. After image: July 24, 2025 \u00a9 2025 Planet Labs PBC. Camp boundaries (2017): Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics (PCBS), accessed on September 5, 2025.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>A preliminary <a href=\"https:\/\/unosat.org\/static\/unosat_filesystem\/4216\/OCHA-CBPF-OPT-034_UNOSAT_CE20231007PSE_WestBank_RefugeeCamps_CDA_SA_20251016.pdf\" class=\"ext\"  target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" data-extlink=\"\">satellite imagery assessment by the United Nations Satellite Center<\/a> from October 2025, found that <a href=\"https:\/\/www.ochaopt.org\/content\/humanitarian-situation-update-339-west-bank\" class=\"ext\"  target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" data-extlink=\"\">1,460 buildings<\/a> sustained damage in the three camps, including 652 that showed signs of moderate damage.<\/p>\n<p>The UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) established the three camps in the early 1950s to house Palestinians who were expelled from their homes or forced to flee following Israel\u2019s creation in 1948. Those refugees\u2014those displaced and their descendants\u2014had resided there ever since.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/ihl-databases.icrc.org\/en\/ihl-treaties\/gciv-1949\/article-49\" class=\"ext\"  target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" data-extlink=\"\">Article 49<\/a> of the Fourth Geneva Convention, applicable in occupied territory, prohibits displacement of civilians except temporarily for imperative military reasons or for the population\u2019s security. Displaced civilians are entitled to protection and proper accommodation. The occupying power must ensure the return of displaced people as soon as hostilities in the area have ceased.<\/p>\n<p>Israeli officials <a href=\"https:\/\/www.hrw.org\/sites\/default\/files\/media_2025\/11\/ip_westbank1125%20annex.pdf\"  target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">said<\/a> in a letter to Human Rights Watch that Operation Iron Wall was initiated \u201cin light of the security threats posed by these camps and the growing presence of terrorist elements within them.\u201d However, Israeli authorities have made no evident attempt to establish that their only feasible option was the complete expulsion of the civilian population to achieve their military objective or why they have prohibited residents from returning, Human Rights Watch found.<\/p>\n<p>Israeli officials have not responded to Human Rights Watch queries about when if ever Israel will allow the Palestinians to return. Finance Minister and Minister in the Defense Ministry Bezalel Smotrich <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/MiddleEastEye\/status\/1889204023775100930\" class=\"ext\"  target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" data-extlink=\"\">said<\/a> in February that if camp residents \u201ccontinue their acts of \u2018terrorism,\u2019\u201d the camps \u201cwill be uninhabitable ruins,\u201d and that \u201c[t]heir residents will be forced to migrate and seek a new life in other countries.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The authorities\u2019 forced removal of Palestinians from the camps also amounted to ethnic cleansing, a non-legal term to describe the unlawful removal one ethnic or religious group from an area by another ethnic or religious group.<\/p>\n<p>The raids were carried out while the spotlight has been on Gaza, where Israeli authorities have committed <span class=\"onomasticon onomasticon-cursor-default\" tabindex=\"0\" title=\"war crimes\" data-tooltip=\"War crimes are serious violations of international humanitarian law committed by individuals with criminal intent. Criminal intent means the violation was carried out deliberately or recklessly. Individuals who order, assist, and aid and abet offenses are also responsible for war crimes.\" aria-label=\"Explain glossary term war crimes\" data-once=\"enable_tooltips\">war crimes<\/span>, ethnic cleansing, <span class=\"onomasticon onomasticon-cursor-default\" tabindex=\"0\" title=\"crimes against humanity\" data-tooltip=\"Crimes against humanity are certain crimes (for example murder, torture, deportation or apartheid) committed by members of government forces or a non-state armed group that are knowingly committed as part of a widespread or systematic attack on a specific civilian population. Widespread could mean many attacks or one major attack. Systematic means the attack was well planned by those who carried it out.\" aria-label=\"Explain glossary term crimes against humanity\" data-once=\"enable_tooltips\">crimes against humanity<\/span>\u2014including forced displacement and extermination\u2014and acts of genocide.<\/p>\n<p>Since the Hamas-led October 7, 2023 attacks in southern Israel, Israeli forces have killed <a href=\"https:\/\/www.ochaopt.org\/data\/casualties\" class=\"ext\"  target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" data-extlink=\"\">nearly 1,000 Palestinians<\/a> in the West Bank. Israeli authorities have increased their use of administrative detention without charge or trial, demolitions of Palestinian homes and building of illegal settlements, while state-backed settler violence and torture of Palestinian detainees are also on the rise. Forced displacement and other repression of Palestinians in the West Bank is part of Israeli authorities\u2019 <span class=\"onomasticon onomasticon-cursor-default\" tabindex=\"0\" title=\"crimes against humanity\" data-tooltip=\"Crimes against humanity are certain crimes (for example murder, torture, deportation or apartheid) committed by members of government forces or a non-state armed group that are knowingly committed as part of a widespread or systematic attack on a specific civilian population. Widespread could mean many attacks or one major attack. Systematic means the attack was well planned by those who carried it out.\" aria-label=\"Explain glossary term crimes against humanity\" data-once=\"enable_tooltips\">crimes against humanity<\/span> of apartheid and persecution.<\/p>\n<p>Senior Israeli officials should be investigated for the <span class=\"onomasticon onomasticon-cursor-default\" tabindex=\"0\" title=\"refugee\" data-tooltip=\"Generally, a refugee is a person who has been forced to flee their country because of persecution, war, or violence. Under the 1951 Refugee Convention, a refugee is someone who is unable or unwilling to return to their home country because of a well-founded fear of persecution for reasons of race, religion, nationality, or political opinion. Under customary international law, governments are prohibited from forcibly returning refugees to their home country if it would place them in danger.\" aria-label=\"Explain glossary term refugee\" data-once=\"enable_tooltips\">refugee<\/span> camp operations and, where found responsible, appropriately prosecuted for <span class=\"onomasticon onomasticon-cursor-default\" tabindex=\"0\" title=\"war crimes\" data-tooltip=\"War crimes are serious violations of international humanitarian law committed by individuals with criminal intent. Criminal intent means the violation was carried out deliberately or recklessly. Individuals who order, assist, and aid and abet offenses are also responsible for war crimes.\" aria-label=\"Explain glossary term war crimes\" data-once=\"enable_tooltips\">war crimes<\/span> and <span class=\"onomasticon onomasticon-cursor-default\" tabindex=\"0\" title=\"crimes against humanity\" data-tooltip=\"Crimes against humanity are certain crimes (for example murder, torture, deportation or apartheid) committed by members of government forces or a non-state armed group that are knowingly committed as part of a widespread or systematic attack on a specific civilian population. Widespread could mean many attacks or one major attack. Systematic means the attack was well planned by those who carried it out.\" aria-label=\"Explain glossary term crimes against humanity\" data-once=\"enable_tooltips\">crimes against humanity<\/span>, including as a matter of <span class=\"onomasticon onomasticon-cursor-default\" tabindex=\"0\" title=\"command responsibility\" data-tooltip=\"Commanders, military and civilian, who knew or should have known and did not stop these violations by those in their chain of command or take steps to punish those responsible may be prosecuted for crimes against humanity, war crimes or other serious crimes as a matter of command responsibility.\" aria-label=\"Explain glossary term command responsibility\" data-once=\"enable_tooltips\">command responsibility<\/span>. Those who should be investigated include Maj. Gen. Avi Bluth, the Central Command commander who was in charge of West Bank military operations, and oversaw camp raids and demolition orders; Lt. Gen. Herzi Halevi and Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir, who each served as Chief of the General Staff of the Israeli military; Minister in the Defense Ministry, Bezalel Smotrich, who sits on the security cabinet and also serves as Finance Minister; Defense Minister Israel Katz; and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/west-bank-genocide-6.jpg\" ><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-308235\" src=\"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/west-bank-genocide-6.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"500\" height=\"147\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/west-bank-genocide-6.jpg 791w, https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/west-bank-genocide-6-300x88.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/west-bank-genocide-6-768x226.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 500px) 100vw, 500px\" \/><\/a><span class=\"sr-only\">Click to expand Image<\/span><\/p>\n<p>The International Criminal Court (ICC) Office of the Prosecutor and domestic judicial authorities under the principle of universal jurisdiction should investigate Israeli officials credibly implicated, including as a matter of <span class=\"onomasticon onomasticon-cursor-default\" tabindex=\"0\" title=\"command responsibility\" data-tooltip=\"Commanders, military and civilian, who knew or should have known and did not stop these violations by those in their chain of command or take steps to punish those responsible may be prosecuted for crimes against humanity, war crimes or other serious crimes as a matter of command responsibility.\" aria-label=\"Explain glossary term command responsibility\" data-once=\"enable_tooltips\">command responsibility<\/span>, in atrocity crimes in the West Bank.<\/p>\n<p>Governments should impose targeted sanctions against Bluth, Zamir, Smotrich, Katz, Netanyahu, and other Israeli officials implicated in ongoing grave abuses in the Occupied Palestinian Territory. They should also press Israeli authorities to end their repressive policies and to impose an arms embargo, suspend preferential trade agreements with Israel, ban trade with illegal settlements, and enforce ICC arrest warrants.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIsrael\u2019s escalating abuses in the West Bank underscore why governments, despite the fragile ceasefire in Gaza, should urgently act to prevent Israeli authorities from escalating their repression of Palestinians,\u201d Hardman said. \u201cThey should impose targeted sanctions on Prime Minister Netanyahu, Defense Minister Katz, and other senior officials responsible for grave crimes against Palestinians and enforce all International Criminal Court warrants.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.hrw.org\/news\/2025\/11\/20\/west-bank-israel-emptying-refugee-camps-a-crime-against-humanity\" >Go to Original &#8211; hrw.org<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>20 Nov 2025 &#8211; Tens of Thousands of Palestinians Forcibly Displaced in Early 2025 Denied Return<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":308232,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[54],"tags":[1854,3482,3264,88,427,1025],"class_list":["post-308231","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-palestine-israel-gaza-genocide","tag-crimes-against-humanity","tag-human-rights-watch","tag-idf","tag-israel","tag-palestine","tag-west-bank"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/308231","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=308231"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/308231\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":308239,"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/308231\/revisions\/308239"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/308232"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=308231"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=308231"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=308231"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}