Prosecutor graphically details abuse of Gaza detainees at Sde Teiman
3 Min Read
Among the charges Israeli soldiers are facing are causing a punctured rectum and fractured ribs.
-
Protesters gather in support of soldiers accused of raping Gaza detainees, outside of the Sde Teiman military base, on July 29, 2024. (AP)
An Israeli army prosecutor reported that five soldiers beat a Palestinian detainee for 15 minutes and tasered him, followed by one soldier sexually assaulting him.
This statement was made during a hearing on Thursday regarding the prosecution's request to extend the soldiers' detention. They are accused of abusing a Palestinian who was detained in Gaza and transferred to the Sde Teiman military facility.
The prosecutor provided a graphic account of the abuse perpetrated by the soldiers, which included puncturing the detainee's rectum and fracturing his ribs. He stated that three of the soldiers, comprising two reservists and their commander, approached the sleeping detainee, woke him up, and then pinned him against a wall.
After the detainee fell to the ground, one of the suspects, joined by other soldiers, beat him with a club for 15 minutes, dragged him across the floor, and electrocuted him with a taser, the court was informed. At that point, one of the soldiers allegedly inserted an object into the prisoner’s rectum, and the suspects warned him not to report the incident. The prosecutor stated that the case is supported by 100 separate testimonies.
The prosecution requested that the five soldiers, currently held under house arrest, remain under these restrictions for another two weeks. The investigation is expected to conclude soon, with evidence to be provided to the suspects' lawyers early next week. The defense will then have the opportunity to request pre-indictment hearings for their clients, according to the army.
Late last month, after nine soldiers were detained in the case, around 200 people protested outside the Beit Lid army base in central occupied Palestine, where the military court is located. The demonstrators stormed the base and the military court building, demanding the soldiers' release.
Abuse accounts in Israeli prisons are not new, as Israeli occupation soldiers continue to abuse Palestinian detainees for their own amusement.
In the United Nations Human Rights Office report earlier this month, the office concluded that Palestinians abducted from Gaza since October 7 have been tortured. The UN report gathered testimony from men, women, and children who had been detained, who described being "held in cage-like facilities, stripped naked for prolonged periods, wearing only diapers."
Many have been held without charge or access to a lawyer and in "deplorable conditions", the report added.
Meanwhile, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Turk lately said testimony received by his office suggested Israeli authorities have inflicted "appalling acts" on Palestinians, including "waterboarding and the release of dogs."
“The testimonies gathered by my office and other entities indicate a range of appalling acts, such as waterboarding and the release of dogs on detainees, amongst other acts, in flagrant violation of international human rights law and international humanitarian law,” Turk stressed.
