Milena Ansari

Milena Ansari is a researcher who, along with Omar Shakir, comprised the entire Israel and Palestine team at Human Rights Watch (HRW). She is newsworthy due to her resignation from HRW, which occurred in protest of the organization's decision to block the publication of a report she co-authored. This report concluded that Israel's denial of the Palestinian right of return constitutes a "crime against humanity." Ansari's resignation, along with Shakir's, highlights internal disagreements within HRW regarding its approach to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and raises questions about the organization's commitment to publishing critical reports on Israel. The resignations and the blocked report are significant because they bring attention to the contentious issue of Palestinian refugees and the right of return, as well as the challenges faced by human rights organizations in addressing this complex and politically sensitive topic.