Omar Shakir

Omar Shakir is the former Israel-Palestine director at Human Rights Watch (HRW). He recently resigned from his position, along with Milena Ansari, due to HRW leadership allegedly blocking the publication of a report he co-authored. This report concluded that Israel's denial of the Palestinian right of return constitutes a crime against humanity. Shakir, who worked for HRW for over 10 years, stated he lost faith in the organization's commitment to its mission. The resignation of Shakir and Ansari, who comprised the entirety of HRW's Israel and Palestine team, has brought attention to internal disagreements within HRW regarding its approach to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and raised questions about the organization's impartiality and commitment to addressing Palestinian rights.