The UN Human Rights Office for Palestine has called on Israel to end what it describes as its unlawful presence in the occupied West Bank and evacuate Israeli settlers from the territory.
The office said Israel must fulfil its obligations under international law. Its position follows the International Court of Justice’s 2024 advisory opinion, which found Israel’s continued presence in the Occupied Palestinian Territory unlawful and said settlement activity should cease.
UN calls for Israeli withdrawal from West Bank
The latest statement comes amid continuing concern over violence and displacement in Palestinian communities across the West Bank.
The UN Human Rights Office pointed in particular to Al-Mughayyir, a Palestinian village in the Ramallah area.
According to the UN, settler and state violence has contributed to Palestinian displacement in and around the area.
The village has also experienced repeated confrontations involving Palestinians, Israeli settlers and Israeli forces.
UN humanitarian reporting documented the killing of a 15-year-old Palestinian boy by Israeli forces during a January raid in Al-Mughayyir. During the same reporting period, OCHA also recorded an incident in which Palestinians injured two Israeli settlers after settlers attacked Palestinian farmers working their land.
Settler violence remains major concern
The UN West Bank withdrawal call comes as humanitarian agencies continue to document settler attacks across the occupied territory.
In one two-week period in January, the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs recorded at least 55 settler attacks that resulted in casualties, property damage or both.
Those incidents injured 30 Palestinians. Twenty were injured by settlers, while Israeli forces injured another 10, according to OCHA.
The agency has also documented displacement linked to settler attacks, threats and intimidation in several Palestinian communities.
The UN has repeatedly warned that settlement expansion and related displacement are changing conditions on the ground in the West Bank.
International court ruled Israeli presence unlawful
The legal basis behind the latest UN position extends beyond the current violence.
In its July 2024 advisory opinion, the International Court of Justice concluded that Israel’s continued presence in the Occupied Palestinian Territory is unlawful.
The court said Israel must end that presence as rapidly as possible. It also said Israel must immediately stop new settlement activity and evacuate settlers from the Occupied Palestinian Territory.
UN bodies have continued to cite those findings when addressing settlement expansion and Palestinian displacement.
Israel has rejected the ICJ’s approach to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, arguing that a political settlement should come through direct negotiations and that the court’s opinion failed to adequately address Israel’s security concerns.