The Palestinian Centre for Human Rights (PCHR) has released a report detailing claims of systematic sexual torture and humiliation of Palestinians detained by Israeli forces during the ongoing conflict in Gaza.
The report draws on testimonies from recently released detainees, alleging that Israeli soldiers and prison officials perpetrated organized acts of sexual violence against men, women, and minors. These acts allegedly include rape, forced nudity, and sexual assault, framed as part of a broader strategy of physical and psychological torture.
Earlier this month, Major-General Yifat Tomer-Yerushalmi, the Israeli military’s top legal officer, resigned after admitting to leaking footage that allegedly shows the gang rape of a Palestinian prisoner at Sde Teiman prison in August 2022. The footage reportedly depicts soldiers surrounding a blindfolded prisoner with riot shields to conceal the assault.
According to PCHR, its lawyers and field researchers have interviewed multiple Palestinians arrested from their homes, medical facilities, or checkpoints throughout Gaza since late 2023. Their accounts depict what the organization describes as an “organized and systematic practice of sexual torture,” featuring acts such as rape, forced stripping, sexual assault using objects, and threats of sexual violence directed at detainees and their families.
The report argues that such acts are frequently accompanied by filming, verbal abuse, and efforts to humiliate the detainees, aimed at “crushing human dignity and erasing individual identity.” It states, “These testimonies do not reflect isolated incidents. They represent a consistent and deliberate policy practiced as part of the ongoing crime of genocide against more than two million Palestinians in the Gaza Strip.”
The report also alleges that sexual torture occurs inside Sde Teiman military camp, which has a history of being condemned by rights groups for inhumane conditions and is reportedly closed to oversight by international bodies such as the International Committee of the Red Cross.
PCHR identifies the victims as civilians of various ages, both men and women, detained without formal charges or trials, claiming that these arrests are arbitrary and part of a broader policy of collective punishment against Gaza residents during the conflict. Among those interviewed were a 42-year-old woman detained at a northern Gaza checkpoint, a 35-year-old man taken from Al-Shifa Hospital, a 41-year-old detainee from Kamal Adwan Hospital, and an 18-year-old man arrested while receiving humanitarian aid.
The organization’s findings, if verified, would represent severe violations of international law, including the UN Convention Against Torture and the Fourth Geneva Convention, which prohibit torture and cruel treatment. PCHR notes that the abuses described could also qualify as genocide under Article II of the 1948 Genocide Convention, which includes “causing serious bodily or mental harm” to members of a group and “deliberately inflicting conditions of life calculated to bring about its physical destruction.”
PCHR has raised concerns that detainees face an “imminent risk of death,” particularly following the Israeli Knesset’s approval of a draft law permitting the death penalty for Palestinian prisoners convicted of terrorism-related offenses. The organization warns that many of these prisoners may have been coerced into confessions under torture, leading to fears of “mass executions in violation of international humanitarian law.”
In response to such allegations, Israeli authorities have typically denied the existence of systematic abuse, asserting that interrogations and detentions comply with legal standards. Access to military detention sites in and around Gaza remains restricted, with international observers, including the Red Cross, reportedly barred from visiting since the onset of the conflict in 2023. Historically, the Israeli military has stated it investigates credible claims of misconduct, asserting compliance with both Israeli and international law; no comment has yet been provided regarding PCHR’s latest report.
Under international law, Israel is obliged to prevent torture and mistreatment of detainees and facilitate access for independent monitors. The UN Committee Against Torture has consistently urged Israel to conduct transparent investigations into abuse allegations and to prosecute those responsible. Human rights organizations, including Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International, have long documented systemic mistreatment of Palestinians in Israeli custody, and PCHR’s recent findings contribute to an accumulating body of evidence for potential submission to the International Criminal Court (ICC).
PCHR intends to continue gathering testimonies and submitting evidence to the ICC, UN Special Procedures, and other accountability mechanisms. The organization has urged the UN, the International Committee of the Red Cross, and state parties to anti-torture and genocide conventions to take “urgent and concrete action” to address what it describes as systematic torture and enforced disappearance. It demands the immediate release of all Palestinians held without charge, disclosure regarding the forcibly disappeared, and unrestricted international access to detention facilities.
Additionally, PCHR has called for emergency medical and psychological assistance for survivors, emphasizing the severe trauma many endure and the ongoing risk of retaliation or re-arrest. The report concludes, “The scale and nature of these crimes require an international response. Silence is complicity.”
The release of this report is anticipated to amplify calls for international investigations into Israeli detention practices, particularly amid ongoing allegations of war crimes and genocide in Gaza. Israel does not acknowledge the jurisdiction of the ICC over its nationals, and prior UN initiatives aimed at accountability have faced political challenges, particularly due to U.S. support for Israel.
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