In a recent report released by UNRWA, the United Nations agency for Palestinian refugees, Gazan citizens released from Israeli detention have detailed harrowing accounts of physical mistreatment. These accounts were recorded by United Nations officials.
The report includes descriptions from Palestinian detainees who endured prolonged periods kneeling, blindfolded and with bound hands, while being denied basic necessities such as food and water. The report also contains accounts of humiliating treatment, including being urinated upon. Some detainees reported severe physical harm, including beatings with metal rods, gun butts, boots, and even dog attacks.
While The New York Times has not been able to directly interview the witnesses or independently validate their accounts, a portion of the accounts in the report align with those shared with The Times by over a dozen released detainees and their families earlier in the year.
Israeli forces have reportedly apprehended thousands of Gazans in the course of their six-month campaign against Hamas, the Palestinian militant group. Despite claims by the Israeli military that only individuals suspected of affiliations with Hamas and similar groups are detained, the UNRWA report suggests that women, children, and the elderly have also been held.
Official responses from the Israeli military and the office of the Prime Minister concerning the report were not forthcoming. However, when questioned about corresponding allegations in the past, Israeli representatives asserted that all detainees were treated lawfully and their fundamental human rights were upheld.
Testimonies from over 100 released Gazans, collected by UNRWA staff at the Kerem Shalom crossing over several months, pointed to instances of trauma and ill-treatment. The report also indicated that injured or sick released prisoners were often rushed to hospitals by Palestinian medics.
The report further details that many detainees are initially held in military facilities within Israel before being transferred to civilian prisons. As per the report, as of April 4, the Israeli authorities had released at least 1,500 detainees at Kerem Shalom.
The UNRWA report also shed light on in-prison treatment, which involved prolonged beatings, deprivation of food, water, and toilet facilities while being bound and made to lie on thin mattresses atop rubble.
The report includes chilling accounts from released prisoners, one of whom claimed an Israeli officer threatened to eliminate her entire family via an airstrike unless she divulged more information. Another former detainee reportedly endured burns from sitting on an electrified probe.
Accounts of sexual abuse and harassment were also present in the report, with some freed Gazans alleging genital beatings, invasive searches, and inappropriate touching. Women reported being forced to undress in the presence of male officers.
In response to a leaked draft of the report last month, the Israeli military reiterated the prohibition of detainee mistreatment, promising that all complaints regarding improper conduct would be referred to the relevant authorities for investigation. They also assured that medical care was accessible to all detainees and that any mistreatment contradicted their values.
The Israeli military acknowledged the deaths of 27 Palestinians in their custody last month, with a few already injured prior to their detention. Additionally, at least 10 Palestinians, primarily from the West Bank, have died in Israel’s civilian prison system since October 7, as per the Palestinian prisoners’ commission and Israeli rights groups, including Physicians for Human Rights-Israel.
UNRWA, a principal provider of humanitarian aid in Gaza, has recently been scrutinized following accusations from Israel of harboring Hamas members among its staff. This led to a suspension of funding from major foreign donors, including the United States, although some have since recommenced it.
Israel has accused at least 30 of the 13,000 UNRWA staff members in Gaza of participating in the Hamas-led attack on Israel on October 7 or its aftermath. In response, UNRWA dismissed the accused staff members, and two investigations are currently ongoing — one by the U.N.’s internal investigations body and another by independent reviewers appointed by the U.N. Secretary-General.
UNRWA stated in the report that some of its staff were physically and psychologically abused while detained by Israeli authorities. During interrogations, they were coerced into admitting alleged affiliations between UNRWA and Hamas, and their participation in the October 7 attack.
