The UN’s Committee Against Torture published a report on Friday that said there are indications that Israel has a “de facto state policy of organized and widespread torture,” which has intensified since October 7, 2023.
Over the past two years, there has been extensive reporting on torture and abuse of Palestinians in Israeli prisons, based on testimony from detainees and Israeli whistleblowers.
The UN committee said in its report that it was concerned over allegations of “repeated severe beatings, dog attacks, electrocution, waterboarding, use of prolonged stress positions, sexual violence, threats against detainees and their family members, insults to personal dignity and humiliation such as being made to act like animals or being urinated on.”
The committee said it was also concerned with reports of “systematic denial of medical care, excessive use of restraints, in some cases resulting in amputation, the performance of surgeries without anaesthetic, exposure to extreme cold or heat, including boiling water, denial of adequate nutrition and water, deprivation of clothing, sleep and access to hygiene facilities and products, including feminine hygiene products, deprivation of light or darkness, use of loud music and noises, denial of the right to freely practice ones religion, and the forcible use of hallucinogenic medication, in a discriminatory manner, against Palestinians.”
According to 972 Magazine, at least 98 Palestinians have died in Israeli custody since October 7, 2023, mainly due to torture, medical neglect, and food deprivation. Of the deceased Palestinians detained in Gaza, less than one-third were classified by the Israeli army as militants, suggesting the rest were civilians.
