UN report: Palestinian detainees held arbitrarily and secretly, subjected to torture and mistreatment

GENEVA - The UN Human Rights Office today published a report on arbitrary, prolonged and incommunicado detention by Israeli authorities, affecting thousands of Palestinians since last October. The report also covers allegations of torture and other forms of cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment, including sexual abuse of women and men.

Since 7 October, thousands of Palestinians - including medical staff, patients and residents fleeing the conflict, as well as captured fighters - have been taken from Gaza to Israel, usually shackled and blindfolded. Thousands more have been detained in the West Bank and Israel. They have generally been held in secret, without being given a reason for their detention, access to a lawyer or effective judicial review, the report states.

At least 53 Palestinian detainees are known to have died in Israeli military facilities and prisons since the horrific attacks by Hamas and other Palestinian armed groups against Israeli civilians on 7 October.

The staggering number of men, women, children, doctors, journalists and human rights defenders detained since 7 October, most of them without charge or trial and held in deplorable conditions, along with reports of ill-treatment and torture and violation of due process guarantees, raises serious concerns regarding the arbitrariness and the fundamentally punitive nature of such arrests and detention, said UN Human Rights Chief Volker Türk.

“The testimonies gathered by my Office and other entities indicate a range of appalling acts, such as waterboarding and the release of dogs on detainees, amongst other acts, in flagrant violation of international human rights law and international humanitarian law,” he said.

On Monday, the Israeli authorities said they were investigating a number of soldiers for allegedly abusing a Palestinian prisoner earlier this month at the Sde Teiman detention centre in the Negev desert.

In Gaza, mostly men and adolescent boys have been detained. Many have been taken into custody while sheltering in schools, hospitals and residential buildings, or at checkpoints during their displacement from north to south, the report finds.

The Israeli military does not usually explain publicly the basis for taking Palestinians into custody in Gaza, although it has in some cases alleged affiliation with Palestinian armed groups or their political wings.

Israel has also not provided information regarding the fate or whereabouts of many of those detained, and the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) has been denied access to facilities where they are held.

Conditions in military-run detention facilities appear worse, the report states, adding children were among those held, in some cases jointly with adults.

Detainees said they were held in cage-like facilities, stripped naked for prolonged periods, wearing only diapers. Their testimonies told of prolonged blindfolding, deprivation of food, sleep and water, and being subjected to electric shocks and being burnt with cigarettes. Some detainees said dogs were released on them, and others said they were subjected to waterboarding, or that their hands were tied and they were suspended from the ceiling. Some women and men also spoke of sexual and gender-based violence.

Accounts of hostages taken by Hamas and other Palestinian armed groups last October also described appalling conditions of captivity, including lack of food, water and poor sanitary conditions, and lack of fresh air and sunlight. Some described being beaten while being taken into Gaza, or seeing other hostages being beaten while in captivity; receiving surgery or stitches without anaesthetic. There were also reports of sexual and gender-based violence in captivity. In addition, the report criticises the Palestinian Authority for continuing to carry out arbitrary detention and torture or other ill-treatment in the West Bank, reportedly principally to suppress criticism and political opposition.

“International humanitarian law protects all those being held, requiring their humane treatment and protection against all acts of violence or threats thereof,” said Türk.

“International law requires that all those deprived of their liberty be treated with humanity and dignity, and it strictly prohibits torture or other ill-treatment, including rape and other forms of sexual violence. Secret, prolonged incommunicado detention may also amount to a form of torture.”

The High Commissioner reiterated his call for the immediate release of all hostages still held in Gaza. All Palestinians arbitrarily detained by Israel must be released. He also called for prompt, thorough, independent, impartial and transparent investigations into all incidents that have led to serious violations of international law; ensure that perpetrators are held accountable and that all victims and their families are provided with their right to remedy and reparations.