Amnesty International accused Israel on Wednesday of carrying out “ethnic cleansing” against Palestinians in the occupied West Bank with the aim of annexing Palestinian territory. “Ethnic cleansing” refers to the forcible expulsion of a population through violence.

According to United Nations data, between January 2023 and April 2026, more than 100 villages in the West Bank were completely or partially evacuated. During the same period, the United Nations documented more than 7,280 cases of Palestinians displaced by the demolition of homes and structures by the Israeli military, including individuals who had been displaced multiple times.

Amnesty International says it has identified dozens of bills in the Israeli Knesset aimed at expanding Israeli civil law and the jurisdiction of settlement communities, as well as the jurisdiction of courts trying Palestinians. Recently, the Knesset approved a measure making the death penalty the default punishment for Palestinians in the West Bank who kill Israelis.