Israeli forces subject Palestinians to ill-treatment in detention centers: UN report

By Nur Asena Erturk

Israeli forces subjected Palestinians to ill-treatment in detention centers, a UN report said, according to the daily The Guardian.

Palestinian detainees were subjected to beating, dog attacks, and sexual assaults, the UN agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA) said in an internal report, looked up by The Guardian.

UNRWA gathered information by interviewing released Palestinian detainees at the Kerem Shalom crossing, during its presence for humanitarian support.

The allegations were not yet confirmed, and Israeli forces denied them, The Guardian also said.

Israeli forces released 1,002 detainees in December, including children, women, and UNRWA staff, but more than 4,000 people were detained since the start of the conflict on Oct. 7, UNRWA report added.

Israel has launched a deadly offensive on the Gaza Strip following a cross-border incursion by the Palestinian group Hamas on Oct. 7, 2023. The ensuing Israeli bombardment has killed at least 30,631 people and injured 72,043 others with mass destruction and shortages of necessities.

The Israeli war has pushed 85% of Gaza’s population into internal displacement amid acute shortages of food, clean water, and medicine, while 60% of the enclave's infrastructure has been damaged or destroyed, according to the UN.

Israel stands accused of genocide at the International Court of Justice. An interim ruling in January ordered Tel Aviv to stop genocidal acts and take measures to guarantee that humanitarian assistance is provided to civilians in Gaza.