Twenty-one human rights organisations are signatories to this report. Our position remains clear: human rights are the universal rights of men and women as such, war crimes are war crimes on either side of the border, and those responsible for crimes must face justice. One hundred twenty men, women and children are still held hostage in Hamas captivity; their time is running out and we call for their immediate release. This clarion call comes hand in hand with our unambiguous statement: we must put an immediate end to the starvation and slaughter of civilians in Gaza.
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This joint annual report is being published for the second time. This year as well, the report aims to present the overall picture of different elements of the occupation and of Israel’s policy, according to the areas of expertise of the signatory organisations. Although the report surveys the main trends of the past year, many of the trends raised here are not the product of the last year, but of 57 years of occupation. We present here a comprehensive picture of the consequences of the occupation in four geographical parts: the humanitarian disaster in the Gaza Strip and the suspected war crimes committed by Israel; the deepening of the annexation and the acceleration of dispossession in the West Bank; the increased Israelisation efforts and displacement of the Palestinian population in East Jerusalem; and the accelerated erosion of democratic space in Israel.
These four issues are intertwined; their appearances in the entire area under Israeli rule should be understood holistically. In this report we addressed each geographical region separately because of the separate legal reality and the different forms of rule in Gaza, Israel, Jerusalem and the West Bank. Within the different normative frameworks, identical themes appear in different formations: the de-humanisation of Palestinians and the advancement of Jewish supremacy, violations of international law, contempt for human lives and the normalisation of violence and destruction, attempts to widen and strengthen Israeli control on the ground irreversibly – all these are elements of the report. We implore the reader to see the situation as it truly is: one comprehensive picture, with different formations, each affecting one another.
The humanitarian disaster in Gaza is a man-made and unjustified, even given the reality of war. Israel is responsible for this disaster, and there is an urgent need to investigate suspected war crimes and to implement Israel’s responsibility as an occupying power for the population in Gaza. Israel is still obligated to prevent the deaths and suffering of thousands of people. This change is mainly dependent on public and international pressure on the government of Israel.
The annexation and the deepening of the occupation regime in the West Bank have accelerated greatly under Israel’s 37th government, and even more so since the start of the war. Currently, the situation in the West Bank continues to change beyond recognition due to settler and soldier violence, the expansion of the settlements, and changes in the legal and structural way Israel rules over the West Bank. In parallel, the growth in the use of arrests of all kinds and the radical reduction in freedom of movement violates the rights of hundreds of thousands and deepens the apartheid regime.
After October 7 and under the mantle of the war, Israel furthered its dispossession efforts in East Jerusalem. Using legislative and bureaucratic mechanisms, restrictions on freedom of movement and freedom of worship, and demolition of houses and violence by state powers, Israel is pushing Palestinians from the city. In practice, by making daily life in Jerusalem unbearable for Palestinians; by deepening restrictions on Palestinian residents; and by creating demographic change, the process of Israelisation of the city is deepened and its character is changed fundamentally.
These processes all take place against a background of racist and inflammatory rhetoric and policies led by the coalition members and its head, especially by senior ministers whose ministries have a direct influence on the occupied territories; chief among themare the Minister for National Security, Itamar Ben Gvir, and the Minister of Finance, Betzalel Smotrich. In parallel, steps have been taken to ensure the continued weakening of safeguards for human rights. Currently, the government openly sabotages and attacks anyone who expresses criticism of Israeli policy, and the protection afforded by the courts for basic democratic rights is decreasing. Without a change in policy and significant support for activists and for human rights organisations, we foresee that the power ofthe executive branch will carry on increasing; the power of the safeguards will continue decreasing; civil society will grow smaller, and the occupation will continue to deepen unimpeded.
These issues shape the reality of the occupation and its consequences. The 21 human rights organisations behind this report are committed to changing this grim reality, and so we end with hope: in the hope of a ceasefire and an end to the assault on human lives and human rights, in the hope for the return of all hostages, and in the hope for a different reality.
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