Omar Shakir, the Israel-Palestine director of Human Rights Watch, resigned in protest after the organisation’s new chief blocked a report accusing Israel of committing “crimes against humanity” in denying Palestinian refugees’ right of return. The report, which Shakir worked on for over 10 years, aimed to highlight the erasure of camps in Gaza and the assault on UNRWA, emphasizing the ongoing Nakba. Despite internal approval, the report was paused for further analysis, leading Shakir to question HRW’s integrity and commitment to principled reporting. This incident follows Shakir’s past advocacy work in investigating rights abuses in Israel, the West Bank, and Gaza, which led to his deportation by the Israeli government in 2019.
Want More Context? 🔎
Loading PerspectiveSplit analysis...
