In a powerful address to the Human Rights Council on Wednesday, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Turk presented a damning indictment of Israel’s conduct in Palestinian territories, alleging systematic human rights violations amounting to potential ethnic cleansing. The comprehensive report covering November 2024 through October 2025 documents what Turk characterized as Israel’s “utter disregard for human rights in Gaza and the West Bank.” The assessment reveals a humanitarian catastrophe of staggering proportions, with over 72,000 fatalities and destruction of more than 80% of Gaza’s infrastructure since conflict initiation in 2023. Despite a ceasefire implemented in October, ongoing violations have resulted in more than 600 additional Palestinian deaths and 1,600 injuries, with at least 1,700 documented violations during the truce period. These include daily attacks, weaponization of humanitarian aid, denial of medical treatment, and severe restrictions on essential supplies. The situation in Gaza remains critical with persistent malnutrition despite limited aid flows, following an official famine declaration in August 2025. In the West Bank, Israeli forces have killed over 1,000 Palestinians during the reporting period, with recent administrative changes consolidating what Turk described as illegal annexation of occupied territory. The High Commissioner condemned these actions as creating a “human-made disaster” through forcible transfer and displacement practices. He emphasized the “shameful” absence of accountability for egregious violations and called for immediate cessation of Israel’s “unlawful occupation” of the West Bank. Turk concluded that human rights have been “crushed” in the Occupied Palestinian Territory and that any realistic rebuilding efforts must be urgently anchored in human rights principles.
Israel seeking ‘permanent demographic change’ in West Bank and Gaza, UN official says
