International Human Rights Aspects of Repatriating Israeli Settlers from the West Bank

Abstract

Legal discourse on the status of Israeli settlers in the West Bank revolves almost exclusively on the (il)legality of the Israeli government’s settlements project and its consequences as a matter of state responsibility. It often concludes that Israel must dismantle the settlements. The present chapter considers the consequences of this obligation from an international human rights legal perspective. It indicates that repatriation of Israeli settlers in the context of an agreement with the Palestinians on an Israeli withdrawal from the West Bank may encroach on a number of human rights. However, notwithstanding the hardship and loss that settlers might experience, repatriation would not, generally speaking, amount to a violation of human rights.