The U.N. human rights office says in a report published Friday that the establishment and expansion of Israeli settlements in the West Bank and east Jerusalem amount to a war crime. The report covers the one-year period from Nov. 1, 2022, to Oct. 31, 2023, when it says roughly 24,300 housing units in existing settlements in the West Bank were “advanced” — the highest number in a year since monitoring began in 2017. It deplored an increase in the building of new settlement homes in recent months.
Quick Read
- The U.N. human rights office has declared that the establishment and expansion of Israeli settlements in the West Bank and east Jerusalem are considered war crimes.
- Their report, covering from Nov. 1, 2022, to Oct. 31, 2023, observed a significant increase in settlement activity, with about 24,300 housing units being advanced in the West Bank.
- U.N. human rights chief Volker Türk highlighted the crisis in the West Bank, noting that settler violence and settlement-related violations have escalated, jeopardizing the feasibility of a viable Palestinian state.
- Recent plans by Israel to build nearly 3,500 settler homes have been criticized by Türk as contravening international law.
- The report states that the creation and expansion of settlements by Israel in occupied territories constitute a war crime under international law.
- The international community largely views these settlements as illegal under international law, although there was no immediate response from the Israeli diplomatic mission in Geneva to the report.
- This development comes amidst heightened violence in the West Bank and the ongoing conflict in Gaza, following the militant group Hamas’s attacks in Israel on Oct. 7.
The Associated Press has the story:
UN Rights: Israeli settlements in Palestinian areas amount to a ‘war crime’
GENEVA (AP) —
The U.N. human rights office says in a report published Friday that the establishment and expansion of Israeli settlements in the West Bank and east Jerusalem amount to a war crime.
The report covers the one-year period from Nov. 1, 2022, to Oct. 31, 2023, when it says roughly 24,300 housing units in existing settlements in the West Bank were “advanced” — the highest number in a year since monitoring began in 2017. It deplored an increase in the building of new settlement homes in recent months.
“The West Bank is already in crisis. Yet, settler violence and settlement-related violations have reached shocking new levels, and risk eliminating any practical possibility of establishing a viable Palestinian state,” U.N. human rights chief Volker Türk said. He presented the report to the Human Rights Council on Friday.
Reports this week that Israel plans to build nearly 3,500 settler homes in three areas “fly in the face of international law,” he said.
Türk said the creation and expansion of settlements amount to the transfer by Israel of its own population into territories that it occupies, “which amounts to a war crime under international law,” his office said in a statement.
There was no immediate comment from the Israeli diplomatic mission in Geneva.
Much of the international community considers the settlements to be illegal under international law.
Expanded settlement activity and an upsurge in violence in the West Bank in recent months have been largely overshadowed by bloodshed and displacement of Palestinians in Gaza, where Israeli forces have led a blistering military campaign against the militant group Hamas following its deadly Oct. 7 attacks in Israel.
