Amnesty International released a new report accusing the Israeli regime of pursuing a deliberate strategy of ethnic cleansing in the occupied West Bank, rather than isolated actions by rogue settlers or far-right ministers. The report states that the displacement campaign is an integral part of organized state policy.

According to the report, at least 117 villages in the West Bank have experienced full or partial displacement between January 2023 and December 2025, forcing about 5,910 people to leave their homes. Most affected villages are in Area C, which under the 1995 Oslo II Accords is under full Israeli military and administrative control.

The report highlights the case of Zanuta, a Bedouin village near which settlers established an illegal outpost, Meitarim Farm, in 2021. Settlers allegedly launched a campaign of violent attacks, including breaking into homes, emptying water tanks, and pumping sewage onto farmland. Residents reportedly reported the attacks to Israeli police, but no action was taken.

In July 2024 and February 2025, Israel's Supreme Court ordered the police and military to facilitate residents' return and protect them. However, the report claims both rulings were ignored, and settlers received state backing to intensify their violence. In April 2024, far-right ministers Bezalel Smotrich and Orit Strock allegedly distributed weapons to settlers at Meitarim Farm.

Amnesty International described the ethnic cleansing campaign in Area C as state-sanctioned, state-driven, and state-implemented, potentially constituting war crimes and crimes against humanity. The rights group called on the international community to prevent the destruction of Palestinian communities and the annexation of the West Bank.

Source: www.aljazeera.com