An as-yet unpublished investigation by UNRWA, the controversial UN agency tasked with managing Palestinian needs in Gaza and elsewhere, accuses Israel of human rights violations in its treatment of detained Gazans, alleging beatings and sexual abuse, according to a report by The New York Times on Sunday.
The IDF strongly denies allegations of sexual abuse and says that all deaths in custody, as well as any formal complaints of mistreatment, are investigated by the military police.
The report comes amid increased scrutiny of UNRWA itself – which is accused of turning a blind eye to Hamas support among its ranks, including staff who actively participated in the October 7 attacks.
It also comes amid scrutiny of Israel’s detention of Palestinians, with widespread interrogations a crucial component of the intelligence-gathering operation behind Israel’s military campaign to depose Hamas and free the estimated 134 Israeli hostages held captive by the terror group.
“The document” – “based on interviews with more than 100 of the 1,002 detainees who were released back to Gaza by mid-February” – “includes accounts from detainees who said they were beaten, stripped, robbed, blindfolded, sexually abused and denied access to lawyers and doctors, often for more than a month,” The Times report said, adding that while the newspaper could not corroborate the allegations, parts of the report match testimony of released detainees interviewed by the outlet.
Prisons recently released detainees due to lack of space
The Israeli NGO Physicians for Human Rights published a report last month on the conditions of Palestinian detainees since October 7, writing that “reports received… raise fears that incarceration conditions have deteriorated to far below the minimum required by law, endangering the lives of those in custody.” The organization called in December for “an immediate ceasefire and the urgent release of all hostages” in Gaza.
Israel Security Agency, the Shin Bet, released several detainees last week, citing a lack of space in the country’s prisons. The move was denounced by National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, of the far-right Otzma Yehudit party, who called the releases a “gesture for Ramadan” and denied that the Prison Service was acting within its jurisdiction.
The minister’s relationships with both the Shin Bet and the Prison Service have been contentious since his appointment to the government in 2022.