Global impunity fuels Israel’s illegal push to annex West Bank: Amnesty

Rights group slams international failure to deter Israel’s escalating annexation and apartheid policies in the occupied West Bank.Published On 26 Feb 2026The international community’s lack of action in taking punitive action against Israel over its pervasive breaches of international law in the occupied West Bank has contributed to making the annexation of Palestinian territory an “irreversible” reality, Amnesty International has said.In a statement released on Thursday, the human rights group said impunity granted to Israel by global powers has further emboldened the far-right government of Benjamin Netanyahu to “turbocharge” efforts to dispossess Palestinians across the West Bank.Recommended Stories list of 3 itemslist 1 of 3Israeli settlers vandalise, torch mosque in occupied West Banklist 2 of 3Nearly 20 countries slam Israel’s ‘de facto annexation’ drive in West Banklist 3 of 3Israel’s opposition leader voices support for ‘broad’ Middle East expansionend of list“The unconditional support of the USA government, combined with the pervasive lack of international accountability for Israel’s genocide against Palestinians in Gaza, decades of crimes under international law linked to its unlawful occupation and its system of apartheid, has further emboldened Israel to escalate its illegal actions,” Erika Guevara-Rosas, Amnesty International’s senior director for research, advocacy, policy and campaigns said.The formalization of land grabs, the expansion of illegal settlements and state-backed settler violence in the territory “are a direct indictment of the international community’s catastrophic failure to take decisive action,” Guevara-Rosas said.Countries, she added, have refused to use the tools at their disposal, such as suspension of the European Union-Israel Association Agreement, to deter Israel from its action.The West Bank has been under Israeli occupation since the 1967 war. Since then, the contiguity of the Palestinian territory has been increasingly fragmented by the construction of hundreds of Israeli housing units, entrenching Israeli occupation. These settlements are illegal under international law.