UN Member States must take urgent steps to protect people deprived of their liberty across the occupied Palestinian territory and Israel

Examples

The widespread and credible reports of their treatment are truly horrific and include practices that could amount to torture. For example:

● The Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) has documented extensive reports of torture and ill-treatment of Palestinian detainees, including physical and sexual violence - and including against children.10

● According to UN experts, at least 53 Palestinians have died in Israeli military custody.11

● 9Israeli soldiers are under investigation, and one charged, for allegedly raping and attacking a Palestinian detainee, who suffered life-threatening injuries as a result.12 According to Physicians for Human Rights Israel, “mounting testimonies indicate these incidents are not isolated. They suggest systematic abuse and violence, and a blind eye to violations.”13

● After conducting interviews with 55 Palestinians detained since 7th October, B’Tselem identified a dozen Israeli prison facilities that “operate as de-facto torture camps.”14

● Palestinian children detained in Israeli-run prisons told Save the Children of increasing starvation, physical abuse and infectious disease, with some reporting sexual assaults and violent beatings.15

● UNRWA identified widespread reports of cruel, inhuman, and degrading treatment against Palestinian detainees such as severe beatings, being forced into cages, being urinated on, and being forced to carry out humiliating acts.16

Hostages held captive by Palestinian armed groups

An estimated 115 Israeli and foreign nationals remain captive in Gaza, including hostages who have been declared dead17, having been seized by Palestinian armed groups during the October 7th attacks. Two child hostages remained in Gaza as of 25 June 2024.18

According to OHCHR, accounts from released hostages “describe violence and extremely harsh conditions of captivity” including beatings, sexual abuse, lack of food and water, and medical treatment without anaesthesia.19 The UN Independent Commission of Inquiry reported it has "verified information on mistreatment and abuse of hostages held in Gaza."20

Access for the ICRC, human rights monitors, lawyers, and family

Access for the ICRC to persons deprived of liberty is enshrined in the Third and Fourth Geneva Conventions.21 The Government of Israel, as a party to the conflict and Occupying Power, and Palestinian armed groups as parties to the conflict, must grant the ICRC access to all detainees and hostages to the full extent required by international humanitarian law.

The ICRC is a neutral actor uniquely placed to provide support and assistance to persons deprived of liberty in conflict settings. ICRC visits “aim at ensuring that the treatment detainees receive is in line with internationally recognized laws and standards and the principles of humanity”.

This includes preventing torture and other forms of ill-treatment; preventing and resolving disappearances; improving conditions of detention; and restoring and maintaining family contact.

The Israeli Government has suspended all humanitarian visits by the ICRC to Palestinian detainees since October 7th. Access for human rights monitors, lawyers, and family members has also been curtailed in the Israeli prison facilities for detainees from the West Bank and is almost non-existent for detainees from Gaza.

The ICRC has also been denied access to visit Israeli and foreign national hostages in Gaza despite repeated requests to the Palestinian armed groups holding them.

This means that despite evidence of egregious human rights violations, including practices that could amount to torture, detainees and hostages lack any kind of protective presence to keep them safe and ensure their rights are upheld.

We emphasise that all Palestinian children arbitrarily detained and the remaining hostages in Gaza must be released immediately and unconditionally, and the abusive Israeli military detention system must end. Until this happens, Member States must do everything in their power to protect people deprived of their liberty.