GENEVA: Human Rights Watch (HRW) has accused Israel of committing war crimes and crimes against humanity by forcibly displacing tens of thousands of Palestinians from three West Bank refugee camps in early 2025. The rights group said around 32,000 residents of Jenin, Tulkarm, and Nur Shams were expelled during “Operation Iron Wall” in January and February, with hundreds of homes demolished and return barred.
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HRW’s 105-page report, “All My Dreams Have Been Erased”, documented the destruction of over 850 structures, with UN assessments placing the figure at 1,460. The displaced families, some of whom have lived in the camps for generations, have not been able to return. Witnesses described soldiers storming homes, ransacking property, and forcing families out using loudspeakers mounted on drones. Residents were left without shelter, food, or medical aid.
.@OHCHR_Palestine appalled by killing of 9-year-old Mohammad Al Hallaq in Hebron by Israeli forces, which brings the number of Palestinians killed in the occupied West Bank since 7 October 2023 to 1001, with 1 in 5 of the victims being a child.
Read @OHCHR_Palestine analysis of… pic.twitter.com/UDKHoVjD2m
— UN Human Rights Palestine (@OHCHR_Palestine) October 17, 2025
Israeli military officials defended the demolitions, stating they were necessary to prevent the infrastructure from being used by fighters, but provided no timeline for residents’ return. HRW noted that such mass displacement violates the Geneva Conventions, which only permit temporary evacuation for imperative military reasons or civilian safety.
The report also linked the expulsions to a broader surge in violence across the West Bank, citing nearly 1,000 Palestinian deaths, increased detention without trial, accelerated settlement building, and rising settler violence following Hamas-led attacks on southern Israel in October 2023. HRW urged governments to impose targeted sanctions on Israeli officials, suspend arms sales, ban settlement goods, and enforce International Criminal Court warrants.
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HRW described the mass expulsions as a form of ethnic cleansing, calling for senior officials responsible to be prosecuted for war crimes and crimes against humanity.