West Bank: Europe and the Arabs

Former Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert accused Jews of committing "murder, ethnic cleansing, and crimes against humanity" in the occupied West Bank, arguing that these practices could lead to prosecutions before the International Criminal Court in The Hague. According to the Brussels-based European news network Euronews, Olmert, who served as prime minister from 2006 to 2009, reiterated his condemnation of his country's policies in the West Bank in an interview with Channel 12 on Saturday, asserting that the situation constitutes serious crimes warranting international accountability.

Olmert's remarks included a direct warning to security officials. He addressed Israeli Chief of Staff Eyal Zamir and Police Commissioner Danny Levy, urging them to "save the state from this catastrophe," adding, "You will end up in The Hague." These warnings come amid an ongoing escalation in the West Bank since October 2023, including daily killings, home demolitions, forced displacement, and a rapid expansion of settlement activity.

The West Bank has been under Israeli control since 1967 and is home to approximately three million Palestinians, in addition to more than 500,000 Israelis living in settlements and outposts considered illegal under international law.

According to the Israeli organization Peace Now, in the first three months of 2025, Israel approved more settlement units than it approved in all of 2024.

The presence of hardline political figures within the government, including Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, has also contributed to the increased activity of extremist Jewish settlement movements. In 2023, Smotrich established a new government body called the Settlement Administration, which he personally oversees, thus expediting decisions related to settlement expansion. Palestinians inspect a burned-out vehicle following an attack by Israeli settlers on villages near Nablus, in the West Bank town of Deir al-Hatab, on March 23, 2026.

Palestinians inspect a burned-out vehicle following an attack by Israeli settlers on villages near Nablus, in the West Bank town of Deir al-Hatab, on March 23, 2026. Majdi Mohammed/AP

In the same context, the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) documented more than 1,800 settler attacks during 2025, which led to the displacement of approximately 1,600 Palestinians.

Legal Pressure and Arrest Warrants
In parallel with this escalation, international legal pressure on Israel is increasing. On November 21, 2024, the Pre-Trial Chamber I of the International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, on charges of war crimes and crimes against humanity during the war on Gaza.

In December 2025, the Appeals Chamber of the International Criminal Court rejected Israel's appeal against these arrest warrants, as well as its request to halt the broader investigation into its actions during the war.

The ceasefire that came into effect on October 10, 2025, ended a two-year war that killed more than 72,000 Palestinians and injured more than 171,000, in addition to destroying approximately 90 percent of Gaza's civilian infrastructure. The United Nations estimated the cost of reconstruction at around $70 billion.