Muscat: Amnesty International has accused Israel of conducting an 'ethnic cleansing' campaign against Palestinians in the occupied West Bank with the aim of annexing Palestinian territory.

According to Oman News Agency, the allegation was set forth in a new 149-page report, which concluded that the forced displacement of Palestinians from the West Bank stems from a systematic policy, rather than mere acts carried out by extremist settlers. The report affirmed that a significant portion of the displacement operations is led by settler groups establishing outposts on Palestinian land, but it stressed that such actions would not occur without the backing of Israeli authorities.

Amnesty International Secretary-General Agn¨s Callamard stated: 'These violations are not the result of isolated individual actions. Settler violence is an integral part of an ethnic cleansing campaign supported by the authorities.' She added: 'What we are witnessing is a deliberate annexation process, in flagrant violation of international law and before the eyes of the entire world.'

United Nations data indicates that more than 100 villages in the West Bank were completely or partially emptied of their inhabitants between January 2023 and April 2026. The UN has also documented more than 7,280 individual cases of Palestinian displacement resulting from the demolition of homes and structures by Israeli forces, a figure that includes individuals who have been displaced more than once.