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B’Tselem Accuses Israel of Expanding Policies to Displace Palestinians
(MENAFN) Israeli human rights organization B’Tselem accused Israel on Monday of pursuing a coordinated set of policies aimed at weakening and ultimately erasing the Palestinian presence in the occupied West Bank, arguing that multiple measures are working together to reshape the territory and expand permanent Israeli-Jewish control.
In a statement, the organization said five interconnected mechanisms are being used to undermine Palestinian communities while strengthening an Israeli-Jewish presence across the occupied territory. It said Israeli policy entered a new stage toward the end of 2022, with measures involving control, violence and displacement becoming more open and increasingly accelerated.
“What Palestinians in the West Bank are experiencing is part of a single political project that permeates every aspect of life,” B’Tselem Executive Director Yuli Novak said.
Novak said Palestinian communities were being forced from their homes and land while economic conditions deteriorated, leaving millions facing persistent insecurity and fear of violence from Israeli forces or settlers.
B’Tselem described the first mechanism as “violence and terror,” referring to what it said was the use of Israeli forces and armed settlers to intimidate Palestinians and impose coercive measures. The organization said 1,107 Palestinians, including 245 children, were killed in the occupied West Bank between Oct. 7, 2023 and Aug. 31, 2026.
The second mechanism was identified as “ethnic cleansing and takeover of space.” According to the organization, this involves the displacement of Palestinian communities alongside the expansion of Israeli-Jewish settlements and other forms of land control.
B’Tselem said 75 Palestinian communities have been displaced so far, while settler outposts and farms have taken control of approximately 1.07 million dunams, or around 264,400 acres. The organization said the area represents about 18% of the occupied West Bank.
It also said approximately 33,000 Palestinians have been forcibly displaced from refugee camps in the northern West Bank, adding to the wider displacement affecting Palestinian communities across the territory.
The third mechanism was described as “economic strangulation.” B’Tselem said Israel’s control over Palestinian employment, tax revenues, financial systems and infrastructure has contributed to worsening economic conditions and increased Palestinian dependence on Israel.
Palestinian Finance Minister Estephan Salameh warned in July that Israel was moving toward completely withholding Palestinian clearance revenues. These funds account for approximately 56% of the Palestinian Authority’s total public revenues and consist of taxes, customs duties and tariffs collected by Israel on behalf of the Palestinian Authority.
Israel began withholding portions of the revenues in 2019 and stopped transferring them entirely about a year ago, according to the figures cited in the report. The amount of withheld revenues has exceeded $6 billion, deepening the Palestinian Authority’s financial crisis and limiting its ability to pay public employees their full salaries.
B’Tselem identified “social and political destruction” as the fourth mechanism, accusing Israeli authorities of restricting political activity, raiding and closing civil society organizations, suppressing demonstrations and detaining activists, students and journalists.
The organization said at least 60 Palestinian journalists have been detained in the occupied West Bank since October 2023. Palestinian figures cited in the report put the total number of Palestinians detained in the territory during the same period at more than 25,000, including journalists, students and activists.
The fifth mechanism was described as the “political framework,” which B’Tselem associated with Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich’s 2017 “Decisive Plan.” The organization said the proposal seeks to make Israeli-Jewish sovereignty permanent through settlement expansion, land seizures and Palestinian displacement.
According to B’Tselem, the plan leaves Palestinians with three possible choices: accepting Jewish supremacy, leaving the territory or facing military repression.
The organization said settlement activity accelerated after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government took office toward the end of 2022. According to its report, Israeli authorities have since approved 104 new settlements in the occupied West Bank.
B’Tselem further said that since Israel began its war in Gaza in October 2023, Israeli forces and settlers have intensified actions across the occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem. These have included killings, arrests, displacement, demolitions of Palestinian homes and continued settlement expansion, according to the organization.
The group said the combined impact of these policies demonstrates what it described as a broader effort to transform the occupied West Bank, weaken Palestinian communities and consolidate Israeli control over the territory.
In a statement, the organization said five interconnected mechanisms are being used to undermine Palestinian communities while strengthening an Israeli-Jewish presence across the occupied territory. It said Israeli policy entered a new stage toward the end of 2022, with measures involving control, violence and displacement becoming more open and increasingly accelerated.
“What Palestinians in the West Bank are experiencing is part of a single political project that permeates every aspect of life,” B’Tselem Executive Director Yuli Novak said.
Novak said Palestinian communities were being forced from their homes and land while economic conditions deteriorated, leaving millions facing persistent insecurity and fear of violence from Israeli forces or settlers.
B’Tselem described the first mechanism as “violence and terror,” referring to what it said was the use of Israeli forces and armed settlers to intimidate Palestinians and impose coercive measures. The organization said 1,107 Palestinians, including 245 children, were killed in the occupied West Bank between Oct. 7, 2023 and Aug. 31, 2026.
The second mechanism was identified as “ethnic cleansing and takeover of space.” According to the organization, this involves the displacement of Palestinian communities alongside the expansion of Israeli-Jewish settlements and other forms of land control.
B’Tselem said 75 Palestinian communities have been displaced so far, while settler outposts and farms have taken control of approximately 1.07 million dunams, or around 264,400 acres. The organization said the area represents about 18% of the occupied West Bank.
It also said approximately 33,000 Palestinians have been forcibly displaced from refugee camps in the northern West Bank, adding to the wider displacement affecting Palestinian communities across the territory.
The third mechanism was described as “economic strangulation.” B’Tselem said Israel’s control over Palestinian employment, tax revenues, financial systems and infrastructure has contributed to worsening economic conditions and increased Palestinian dependence on Israel.
Palestinian Finance Minister Estephan Salameh warned in July that Israel was moving toward completely withholding Palestinian clearance revenues. These funds account for approximately 56% of the Palestinian Authority’s total public revenues and consist of taxes, customs duties and tariffs collected by Israel on behalf of the Palestinian Authority.
Israel began withholding portions of the revenues in 2019 and stopped transferring them entirely about a year ago, according to the figures cited in the report. The amount of withheld revenues has exceeded $6 billion, deepening the Palestinian Authority’s financial crisis and limiting its ability to pay public employees their full salaries.
B’Tselem identified “social and political destruction” as the fourth mechanism, accusing Israeli authorities of restricting political activity, raiding and closing civil society organizations, suppressing demonstrations and detaining activists, students and journalists.
The organization said at least 60 Palestinian journalists have been detained in the occupied West Bank since October 2023. Palestinian figures cited in the report put the total number of Palestinians detained in the territory during the same period at more than 25,000, including journalists, students and activists.
The fifth mechanism was described as the “political framework,” which B’Tselem associated with Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich’s 2017 “Decisive Plan.” The organization said the proposal seeks to make Israeli-Jewish sovereignty permanent through settlement expansion, land seizures and Palestinian displacement.
According to B’Tselem, the plan leaves Palestinians with three possible choices: accepting Jewish supremacy, leaving the territory or facing military repression.
The organization said settlement activity accelerated after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government took office toward the end of 2022. According to its report, Israeli authorities have since approved 104 new settlements in the occupied West Bank.
B’Tselem further said that since Israel began its war in Gaza in October 2023, Israeli forces and settlers have intensified actions across the occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem. These have included killings, arrests, displacement, demolitions of Palestinian homes and continued settlement expansion, according to the organization.
The group said the combined impact of these policies demonstrates what it described as a broader effort to transform the occupied West Bank, weaken Palestinian communities and consolidate Israeli control over the territory.
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