The world could be on the brink of witnessing “another Nakba”, the United Nations Special Committee investigating Israeli practices warned on Friday, in a scathing report that accuses Israel of engaging in ethnic cleansing and systematically violating Palestinian human rights.
The warning came following the committee’s annual fact-finding mission to Amman, where it reviewed testimonies and reports concerning Israel’s conduct in the occupied Palestinian territories, particularly in light of recent developments in Gaza.
The committee's findings highlighted a plan unveiled earlier this week by Israeli authorities to forcibly transfer hundreds of thousands of Palestinians from northern Gaza into six designated encampments in the southern part of the besieged enclave — a move drawing strong condemnation from international observers and rights organisations.
“For Palestinians, the threat of displacement is not new. It recalls the trauma of the 1948 Nakba, during which around 760,000 Palestinians were expelled or fled their homes during the establishment of the state of Israel,” the UN committee stated. “What we are witnessing could very well be another Nakba.”
The report further asserts that the Israeli government’s current policies are being carried out in line with broader “colonial aspirations” aimed at expanding territorial control. “The goal of wider colonial expansion is clearly the priority of the government of Israel,” the committee said.
Widespread rights abuses cited
In addition to concerns about forced displacement, the UN committee documented grave human rights violations, including the widespread use of torture and other inhumane treatment by Israeli forces against Palestinians in prisons and detention camps.
“According to testimonies, it is evident that the use of torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment, including sexual violence, is a systematic practice of the Israeli army and security forces,” the report said. “The methods read as a playbook of how to try to humiliate, derogate, and strike fear into the hearts of individuals.”
The findings come as Israel continues to enforce a complete blockade on humanitarian aid entering Gaza, drawing sharp criticism from international humanitarian organisations. The committee condemned the blockade as a deliberate policy to starve civilians, with food trucks reportedly halted only kilometres from the border.
“It is hard to imagine a world in which a government would implement such depraved policies to starve a population to death, whilst trucks of food are sitting only a few kilometres away,” the committee observed. “Yet, this is the sick reality for those in Gaza.”
Background and mandate
The UN Special Committee to Investigate Israeli Practices Affecting the Human Rights of the Palestinian People and Other Arabs of the Occupied Territories was established by the General Assembly in 1968, in response to concerns raised following the 1967 Arab-Israeli war and the subsequent occupation of Palestinian territories.
Despite decades of international condemnation, the committee noted that violations continue with impunity, and expressed concern that the current scale of operations in Gaza represents an unprecedented level of aggression and humanitarian neglect.
The UN report has reignited calls for accountability and immediate international intervention to prevent further escalation and displacement in the occupied territories.
