Israel Faces Scrutiny Over “Systematic” Abuse of Palestinian Prisoners
The ongoing war between Israel and the Islamist Hamas militia that has governed the Gaza Strip for 23 years escalated dramatically after Hamas launched a large-scale surprise attack on October 7, 2023, killing approximately 1,200 Israelis. Over 250 more were taken hostage. The Israel Defense Force (IDF) mounted a major counteroffensive arresting thousands of Palestinians, including both suspected Hamas fighters and civilians, and placing them in detention camps.
There detainees have reported abuse, including sexual abuse. A report released by the United Nations human rights office on July 30, 2024, said that prisoners were often stripped, blindfolded and shackled in “cage-like” holding areas; some were even required to wear diapers for long periods. All were typically detained without explanation and denied access to attorneys.
The report also cited incidents of physical abuse, including “waterboarding and the release of dogs on detainees, amongst other acts, in flagrant violation of international human rights law and international humanitarian law,” U.N. High Commissioner Volker Türk said.
While the report noted that 53 prisoners had died in custody, the causes of death were not disclosed. A previous U.N. report issued in April 2024 said that Palestinian detainees had been deprived of food, water and toilets, and subjected to intimidation and harassment.
More recently, a video aired by an Israeli TV station showed IDF soldiers apparently sexually abusing a Palestinian prisoner. “We have seen the video, and reports of sexual abuse of detainees are horrific,” said U.S. State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller. “There ought to be zero tolerance for sexual abuse, rape of any detainee, period.”
According to B’Tselem, an Israeli human rights organization, the IDF has “conducted a systematic policy of prisoner abuse and torture since the start of the Gaza war in October, subjecting Palestinian detainees to acts ranging from arbitrary violence to sexual abuse,” Reuters News reported.
B’Tselem released a report in July 2024 based on interviews with 55 prisoners who described beatings, degrading treatment and sleep deprivation. That same month the IDF detained nine soldiers accused of severely abusing a Palestinian prisoner at the Sde Teiman military prison camp in the Negev desert.
“The food is very bad and they give it to us in a humiliating manner,” said former detainee Fathiyeh Abu Mousa. “They gave us two meals a day, no clothes or shampoo to bathe or shower. My face flared up with a rash from the mattress. It was utter humiliation there.”
“People are dying,” added another former prisoner, Ataa Shbat. “Torture which you cannot imagine unless you taste it. Suffering which you cannot imagine unless you experience it.
The IDF said it was investigating detainee deaths and incidents of abuse, also phasing out the Sde Teiman detention camp after the Association for Civil Rights in Israel filed a petition with the country’s Supreme Court to close the facility. Israel’s Prison Service claimed all detainees are treated lawfully, though a spokesman acknowledged that stricter prison conditions were ordered following the Hamas attack.
Source: Reuters News