Allegations of Torture of Palestinians by Israeli Soldiers
In the images broadcast on Channel 12 television, which caused a great stir, many Palestinians are seen lying face down in an area surrounded by wires. In the images, the moments when Israeli soldiers pick up a Palestinian lying on the ground and take him to another area are captured on camera. The sexual torture of the detained Palestinian by some soldiers in particular makes this situation even more horrifying. Other soldiers are seen trying to prevent these moments from being recorded by security cameras. The Channel 12 report included the statement, “(The soldiers) are probably aware of the security cameras and are trying to hide their actions with shields.”
The report states that Israeli soldiers tortured a detained Palestinian by inserting an object into his anus. It was reported that the Palestinian, who was sexually tortured, was taken to the hospital covered in blood. On July 29, after Israeli military police arrived in Sde Teiman to detain 10 Israeli soldiers accused of sexually torturing a Palestinian, incidents broke out when the soldiers who were going to be detained resisted. Some Israeli ministers, such as the far-right National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir and Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, sent messages of support to the soldiers who were sexually torturing them. Following these messages of support, many far-right Israelis, including members of parliament, raided Sde Teiman.
Similar groups had also forced their way into the Beit Lid base, where the military court where the detained soldiers were taken, in the evening. The raids by far-right extremists on two military bases in one day sparked widespread debate in Israel. Five of the 10 detained soldiers were released by an Israeli court, while the status of the others is still under investigation. The court extended the detention of the five soldiers accused of sexual torture until Sunday, August 11.
Allegations Facing Sde Teiman Detention Center
The Sde Teiman detention center in southern Israel, where detained Gazans are held, has frequently been in the news with investigation of torture. A report in the New York Times last month stated that Gazans held at the Sde Teiman detention center are blindfolded and handcuffed, forced to sit silently on the ground in an open area for up to 18 hours a day. The report noted that Palestinian detainees brought to the detention center are held there for up to three months, and that many are subjected to inhumane treatment and torture during interrogation processes.
Some Gazans who were held here and later released have spoken publicly about the torture they were subjected to in Sde Teiman. This situation is also being closely monitored and condemned by international human rights organizations. It is important to raise more awareness about torture and ill-treatment so that such incidents do not happen again.
