UN Report: Displacement of Palestinian Refugees from 3 Camps in the West Bank Raises Concerns About Ethnic Cleansing
Geneva, Sept 4 (KUNA) -- The UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) warned on Friday that the displacement of all Palestinian residents from three refugee camps in the West Bank by Israeli occupation forces amounts to collective punishment and raises concerns about crimes against humanity and ethnic cleansing.
In a report issued from Geneva titled “Destruction of Palestinian Refugee Camps in the Northern West Bank,” the High Commissioner stated that “the Israeli occupation army and police, along with other forces deployed as part of the ongoing ‘Iron Wall’ operation, killed civilians, destroyed hundreds of homes, damaged roads and other infrastructure, and forced residents of the Jenin, Tulkarm, and Nuseirat camps to leave.”
It added that by October 2025, occupation forces had destroyed or damaged 52 percent of buildings in the Jenin refugee camp, 48 percent in the Nuseirat camp, and 36 percent in the Tulkarm camp, resulting in the forced displacement of more than 33,000 Palestinian refugees.
The report noted that the Israeli occupation’s Minister of War ordered the army to remain in the three camps and barred Palestinians from returning, causing the forced displacement of approximately 33,362 Palestinian refugees from these camps as of July of this year, according to data from the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA).
In this context, the High Commissioner expressed serious concerns regarding crimes against humanity committed by the Israeli occupation in light of the widespread, long-term, and systematic displacement of Palestinians from refugee camps during the “Iron Wall” operation. It emphasized that the use of airstrikes, armored bulldozers, and targeted explosions to destroy the camps, force their residents to flee, and prevent their return is prohibited under international law. Such operations could amount to collective punishment and raise concerns of ethnic cleansing.
The High Commissioner reported that Israeli occupation forces killed 102 Palestinians during the period covered by the report, including 21 children, representing 46 percent of the total killings carried out by occupation forces in the West Bank during that period.
The report quoted UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk, stating that “the manner in which the ‘Iron Wall’ operation was carried out indicates that its objective was to displace as many Palestinians as possible and make way for further illegal Israeli settlements, in additional violation of international law.”
He stressed the necessity for Israel to end its 59-year occupation of Palestinian land and halt any efforts aimed at forcibly displacing more Palestinians and further undermining the geographic contiguity of a future Palestinian state. He also emphasized the need for the Israeli occupation authorities to take steps to comply with their obligations under international law, as clarified by the International Court of Justice more than two years ago, namely “to end its illegal presence in the occupied Palestinian territories as quickly as possible.”
According to the report, these three camps are among 19 camps in the West Bank established to shelter Palestinian refugees following mass forced displacement during the Nakba (Catastrophe) of 1948, and are administered by UNRWA. (End) A.M.Kh / A.M.S
