UN chief says 37,000 West Bank Palestinians displaced in 2025, warns Gaza war imperils two-state solution

More than 37,000 Palestinians were displaced in the occupied West Bank in 2025, a year.

That also saw record levels of violence by Israeli settlers, United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said on Tuesday, warning that developments on the ground are rapidly eroding the prospects of a two-state solution.

“We enter 2026 with the clock ticking louder than ever,” Guterres told the opening session of the UN Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People. “Will the year ahead bend towards peace or slip into the abyss of despair?”

Guterres said illegal settlement expansion, demolitions, evictions and displacement across the West Bank were accelerating, describing Israel’s actions as destabilising and unlawful under international law.

He flagged Israel’s recent tender for 3,401 housing units in the E1 area of the West Bank as “profoundly alarming”. “If carried forward, it would sever the northern and southern West Bank, undermine territorial contiguity, and strike a severe blow to the viability of a two-state solution,” he said.

Gaza situation remains dire

Turning to Gaza, Guterres said Palestinians continued to endure “grave suffering”, noting that more than 500 people have been killed since the Israel–Hamas truce in October. “I urge all parties to implement the ceasefire agreement in full, exercise maximum restraint, and comply with international law and UN resolutions,” he said.

He called for the rapid and unimpeded delivery of humanitarian aid at scale, including through the Rafah crossing, which Israel reopened on Monday. However, he criticised Israeli authorities for continuing to suspend international non-governmental organisations involved in aid delivery.

“This defies humanitarian principles, undermines fragile progress, and worsens the suffering of civilians,” Guterres said.

Future of Gaza and UNRWA concerns

Guterres stressed that any sustainable solution must involve a unified and internationally recognised Palestinian government governing Gaza, the West Bank and East Jerusalem.

“Gaza is and must remain an integral part of a Palestinian state,” he said.

He also reaffirmed support for the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA), condemning recent Israeli legislation and actions that he said obstruct the agency’s work, including moves to demolish its Sheikh Jarrah compound in occupied East Jerusalem.

“UNRWA premises are United Nations premises,” Guterres said. “They are inviolable and immune from any form of interference.” He described threats against UNRWA staff as “utterly abhorrent”, stressing that Israel is obliged under international law to respect UN privileges and immunities.

Reiterating his long-held position, Guterres said an end to Israel’s occupation of Palestinian territory was essential.

“There is only one viable route to peace: the two-state solution, in line with international law and relevant United Nations resolutions,” he said, calling on the international community to act “with clarity, unity and determination.”