West Bank Facing Largest Displacement Since 1967, Warns UN
The occupied West Bank is witnessing its worst mass displacement in nearly six decades, according to a stark warning issued by the United Nations this week. The UN says that Israel’s ongoing military campaign in the northern West Bank, which began in January, has forced tens of thousands of Palestinians from their homes — marking the largest population displacement in the territory since Israel first occupied it during the 1967 Arab-Israeli War.
Juliette Touma, a spokesperson for the UN agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA), described the current Israeli operation — reportedly the longest since the Second Intifada of the early 2000s — as having a devastating impact on several refugee camps across the northern West Bank. Speaking to journalists via video from Jordan, Touma highlighted that the situation is rapidly pushing communities to the brink, with growing fears that such forced displacement may amount to “ethnic cleansing”.
The UN human rights office echoed these grave concerns. According to its spokesman, Thameen Al-Kheetan, around 30,000 Palestinians remain forcibly displaced under the military operation, codenamed “Iron Wall”. Since the start of 2024, Israeli authorities have also issued demolition orders for about 1,400 homes in the northern West Bank alone — a figure the UN describes as “alarming” given the scale of human suffering it entails.
The statistics paint an increasingly dire picture. Since October 2023, demolitions by Israeli forces have displaced nearly 2,907 Palestinians across the West Bank, while violence and attacks by Israeli settlers have forced another 2,400 Palestinians to flee — nearly half of them children. Together, these actions are “emptying large parts of the West Bank of Palestinians”, Kheetan warned. He further stressed that the permanent removal of civilians from occupied territory could be classed as an unlawful transfer under international law — and depending on the circumstances, might amount to a crime against humanity.
Adding to this bleak scenario is a sharp rise in settler violence. During the first half of this year alone, 757 attacks by Israeli settlers were recorded, marking a 13% increase compared to the same period last year. The month of June alone saw 96 Palestinians injured in settler attacks — the highest monthly toll in over 20 years, according to UN figures.
The human cost of the conflict is escalating. Since October 2023, at least 964 Palestinians have been killed in the occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem. During the same period, 53 Israelis have died in reported attacks or armed clashes, with 35 of those fatalities occurring in the West Bank.
The UN’s warning comes at a time when international observers are voicing increasing alarm over the humanitarian consequences of the military operations and the growing insecurity in the region. Many fear that the continued cycle of demolitions, violence, and displacement will not only worsen the plight of Palestinian families but could also destabilize the wider region even further.
Rights groups and UN agencies have repeatedly called on Israel to halt forced displacements, demolitions, and settler violence, urging all parties to adhere to international humanitarian law. But on the ground, displaced families continue to face harsh realities — often forced to leave behind generations-old homes, livelihoods, and communities for an uncertain future.
As the world watches, the warning that the West Bank is seeing the largest displacement since 1967 serves as a grim reminder that the conflict’s human cost is still growing — with no end yet in sight.
Related: PIA to Resume UK Operations After Ban Lifted
