UN warns 'Israel' of possible inclusion in sexual violence blacklist
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UN chief Guterres warns the Israeli occupation may join the sexual violence blacklist over documented abuses against Palestinian detainees in the occupied territories.
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UN Chief Antonio Guterres speaks during a high-level International Conference for the Peaceful Settlement of the Question of Palestine and the Implementation of the Two-State solution at United Nations Headquarters, Monday, July 28, 2025. (AP)
United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has warned the Israeli occupation that it could be included in the UN’s “blacklist” of entities and groups suspected of involvement in sexual violence during armed conflicts, following documented violations against Palestinians.
In a letter addressed to Israeli ambassador Danny Danon, Guterres said he was “gravely concerned” about reports of abuse by the Israeli military and security forces in multiple prisons, a detention center, and a military base. He stated that “Israel” could be categorized as abusers in his upcoming report on sexual violence in conflict “due to significant concerns of patterns of certain forms of sexual violence that have been consistently documented by the United Nations.”
According to Guterres, cases recorded by the UN indicate recurring patterns of sexual violence, including genital violence, prolonged forced nudity, and repeated strip searches carried out in an abusive and degrading manner.
'Israel' not allowing UN monitors into prisons
The Israeli occupation has refused to allow UN monitors entry, which Guterres said complicates the ability to make a “definitive determination” about the patterns, trends, and specific instances of sexual violence by its forces. He urged the Israeli regime to take immediate measures to end all acts of sexual violence and grant access for investigations.
In March, UN-backed human rights organizations accused “Israel” of committing acts of sexual and gender-based violence. The Independent International Commission of Inquiry on the Occupied Palestinian Territory documented these violations and charged Israeli forces with rape and sexual violence against Palestinian abductees.
Last year, the Israeli military announced the detention of nine soldiers in connection with the sexual abuse of a Palestinian abductee at the notorious Sde Teiman prison. Israeli media later released a video showing soldiers sexually assaulting a male abductee, which the US State Department condemned as “horrific.”
Thousands abducted from West Bank
Prisoners’ rights groups report that the Israeli occupation has abducted approximately 18,500 Palestinians from the occupied West Bank since October 7, 2023, with some later released. By early July, around 10,800 Palestinians remained in Israeli prisons, including 49 women and 450 children, the highest figures since the Second Intifada in 2000.
Rights groups describe the detention conditions as deplorable, with poor hygiene, ongoing torture, harassment, and repression. Palestinian abductees have resorted to open-ended hunger strikes to protest their unlawful detention. Human rights organizations say “Israel” continues to violate all rights and protections guaranteed to detainees under the Fourth Geneva Convention and international law.
According to the Palestine Detainees Studies Center, about 60% of Palestinian abductees in Israeli jails suffer from chronic illnesses, with several having died during detention or shortly after release due to the severity of their conditions.
Palestinian prisoners electrocuted, abused
Palestinian prisoners are being electrocuted, among more abusive forms of punitive actions, in "Israel's" Gilboa prison, the Palestinian Commission for Detainees and Ex-Detainees' Affairs confirmed on Friday.
According to a lawyer from the commission who visited the prison, Israeli occupation authorities have increased the use of torture with electricity.
Special repression units storm prisoner sections under the pretext of inspection, handcuff detainees by their wrists and ankles, and force them into the prison yard. There, prisoners are reportedly beaten, insulted, and subjected to electric shocks. They are then dragged across the concrete floors and forced into the shower area, where their clothes and bodies are soaked with water before being electrocuted again, amplifying pain and physical trauma.
The lawyer described the use of specialized stun guns, which double as blunt-force weapons. These are allegedly made of solid metal and have caused severe head injuries, leading to heavy bleeding among detainees. Prison guards were reported to have mocked and laughed during the abuse, with several prisoners losing consciousness due to the severity of the torture.
