Israel’s forced expulsion of Palestinians from West Bank refugee camps amounts to war crimes, HRW alleges

By Sophie Tanno, CNN

(CNN) — Israel’s forced removal of tens of thousands of Palestinians from refugee camps in the occupied West Bank earlier this year amounts to war crimes and crimes against humanity, Human Rights Watch (HRW) has alleged.

According to a 105-page report released by the non-profit organization, 32,000 Palestinians were expelled by Israeli forces from three camps in January and February, while international attention was focused on Israel’s war in Gaza, and they have not been allowed to return.

As part of its research, HRW said it interviewed 31 displaced Palestinian refugees from Jenin, Tulkarem and Nur Shams refugee camps. The organization also analyzed satellite imagery and Israeli military demolition orders, as well as verified video and images of Israeli military operations.

In response to the report, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) told CNN in a statement that the military launched what it called Operation “Iron Wall” in the three camps ten months ago “in light of the security threats posed by these camps and the growing presence of terrorist elements within them.”

The IDF said it destroyed “rows of buildings” to create “new access routes inside the camps.” The military said the decision to demolish the buildings “was made based on operational necessity, with careful consideration and only after alternative options to achieve the same military advantage were examined.”

The IDF said the “demolitions were conducted lawfully, based on military necessity and with the required proportionality” and that “terrorism in Judea and Samaria has decreased by 70%” since the start of the operation, using the biblical term for the West Bank.

The HRW report claims that Israel stormed Jenin refugee camp on January 21, with Apache helicopters, drones, bulldozers, and armored vehicles carrying ground forces, to oust the Palestinians living there.

Similar operations were carried out at Tulkaram on January 27, and Nur Shams on February 9.

Israeli soldiers “were yelling and throwing things everywhere…. It was like a movie scene – some had masks and they were carrying all kinds of weapons,” one 54-year-old woman told HRW.

The displaced Palestinians have not been permitted to return home, the report found, adding that Israeli soldiers fired upon those who did attempt to re-enter. Only a few have been allowed to collect their belongings, it said, while HRW analysis of satellite imagery six months on found that more than 850 homes and other buildings had been damaged or destroyed across the camps.

No shelter or humanitarian assistance was offered to displaced residents by the Israeli military, the report found. Instead, people were left to fend for themselves, seeking shelter wherever they could, including crowding into the homes of relatives or friends, or arriving at mosques or local charities.

All three camps date back to the early 1950s, when they were established by the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) to house Palestinians who were expelled from their homes or forced to flee following Israel’s creation in 1948. Those refugees and their descendants had resided there ever since.

“Israeli authorities in early 2025 forcibly removed 32,000 Palestinians from their homes in West Bank refugee camps without regard to international legal protections and have not permitted them to return,” Nadia Hardman, a senior migrant rights researcher at HRW, said.

“With global attention focused on Gaza, Israeli forces have carried out war crimes, crimes against humanity, and ethnic cleansing in the West Bank that should be investigated and prosecuted.”

Since the Hamas-led attacks of October 7, 2023, the Israeli military has intensified operations across the West Bank, targeting Palestinian militant cells, imposing checkpoints, and cutting communities off from the outside world.

There has also been an escalation in Israeli settler attacks and land grabs in the territory. Israeli settlements in the West Bank are considered illegal under international law.

HRW is now calling for senior Israeli officials to be investigated over the expulsions, including Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, and Maj. Gen. Avi Bluth, the Central Command commander who oversaw West Bank military operations.

Where found responsible, they should be prosecuted for war crimes and crimes against humanity, the organization said.

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CNN’s Dana Karni contributed to this report.