UN Panel Accuses Israel of Extermination in West Bank Ahead of Election
Investigators report 1,143 Palestinian deaths since 2023, citing systematic attacks and collective punishment.
By Rosa Wojcik ·
The United Nations Independent International Commission of Inquiry on the Occupied Palestinian Territory determined that Israeli forces committed crimes against humanity in the West Bank, specifically citing extermination, torture, and sexual violence. The panel released its findings on Monday, one day before Israel holds its general election. The report states that military operations and settler violence formed a widespread and systematic attack on civilians.
The commission, established by the UN Human Rights Council in 2021, focused on harm caused by both Israeli and Palestinian security forces from October 2023 through October 2026. It concluded that Israeli authorities intended to collectively punish West Bank residents following the Hamas attack on Israel that began on October 7, 2023. The panel found that the situation in the territory deteriorated sharply after that date.
According to the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, 1,143 Palestinians were killed in the occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem, during the three-year period. At least 250 of the victims were children. This data points to a sharp increase in casualties since the start of the conflict in Gaza.
Israel’s mission in Geneva rejected the findings, calling them part of a misinformation campaign designed to demonize the state. A statement from the mission argued that the international community should reject the distortions and demand the commission’s immediate dissolution. Israel previously rejected the panel’s September 2025 finding that it committed genocide in Gaza.
The release of the report coincided with new military activity in Hebron. Israeli forces carried out expulsions and demolitions in the city following a gun attack last week. The clampdown adds immediate context to the panel’s assessment of ongoing operations.
Former South African High Court judge Navi Pillay, who chaired the investigation until November 2025, received the Nobel Peace Prize earlier this month. The commission does not speak for the UN as a whole but acts as an independent investigative body mandated to examine violations of international law.
The next major step in the process will be the reaction from other international bodies and governments to the specific findings on extermination and collective punishment.
