UN rights chief Volker Turk accuses Israel of an ‘apartheid system’ in the West Bank, citing systematic discrimination and escalating settler violence.
GENEVA: The United Nations rights chief has accused Israel of operating an “apartheid system” in the occupied West Bank.
In a new report, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Turk said systematic discrimination against Palestinians had “drastically deteriorated” in recent years.
“There is a systematic asphyxiation of the rights of Palestinians in the West Bank,” Turk said in a statement.
He stated that every aspect of Palestinian life is controlled by Israel’s discriminatory laws, policies and practices.
“This is a particularly severe form of racial discrimination and segregation, that resembles the kind of apartheid system we have seen before,” he added.
The report marks the first time a UN rights chief has applied the term “apartheid” to the situation.
Israel’s diplomatic mission in Geneva slammed the report’s “absurd and distorted accusations of racial discrimination”.
It charged the UN rights office with a “politically driven fixation… on vilifying Israel”.
The report said Israeli authorities treat Israeli settlers and Palestinians under two distinct legal systems.
This results in unequal treatment on critical issues like land access and criminal prosecution.
Palestinians face large-scale land confiscation and are prosecuted in military courts where their rights are “systematically violated”.
Turk demanded Israel repeal all laws and policies that perpetuate systemic discrimination.
The discrimination is compounded by escalating settler violence, often with the support of Israeli security forces.
More than 500,000 Israelis live in West Bank settlements, which are home to around three million Palestinians.
Violence has surged since the Hamas attack on October 7, 2023.
Israeli troops and settlers have killed more than 1,000 Palestinians in the West Bank since the Gaza war began.
At least 44 Israelis have been killed in Palestinian attacks or military operations in the same period.
The report said Israeli authorities have expanded the use of unlawful force, arbitrary detention and torture.
It described an “unprecedented deterioration” of human rights with severe movement restrictions and media crackdowns.
Settlements are expanding rapidly despite being illegal under international law.
Unlawful killings of Palestinians are occurring “with almost complete impunity”, the report warned.
Of over 1,500 Palestinian killings between 2017 and last September, Israel opened just 112 investigations.
Only one conviction resulted from those investigations.
The report found reasonable grounds to believe the separation and subordination is intended to be permanent.
This maintains “oppression and domination of Palestinians”, it stated.
The situation amounts to a violation of an international anti-racism convention which prohibits apartheid.
The UN rights office urged Israel to end its unlawful presence in the occupied Palestinian territory.
It called for the dismantling of all settlements and respect for Palestinian self-determination.
