The Euro-Mediterranean Human Rights Monitor said that it received new testimonies from Palestinian detainees, released from Israeli prisons and detention centers, confirming the continued systematic commission of crimes of violent torture and inhuman treatment against thousands of Palestinian civilians.
He added – in a report issued yesterday, Wednesday – that the Israeli occupation forcefully injected Palestinian prisoners who were arrested during the war on the Gaza Strip with unknown substances, which left scars and distinct marks on their bodies.
The Euro-Mediterranean human rights activist pointed out that the occupation practices murder, rape, and other forms of sexual violence and torture against prisoners and detainees.
He confirmed that he followed the Israeli army’s release of dozens of detainees on June 11, from the Zikim area in the northern Gaza Strip. During the moment of their release, the Israeli army opened fire on them, forcing them to walk and jog hundreds of meters until they could reach populated areas.
The testimonies of released Palestinian detainees confirm – according to the Observatory – that Israeli forces are continuing with the approach of severe torture and retaliation against Palestinian detainees despite their awareness that they are civilians. Euro-Med believes that the continuation of this torture is a natural result of the isolation of the Palestinian people by Israel in light of the silence of the international community, including the relevant bodies in the United Nations.
The Human Rights Watch called on international justice institutions and the international community to break the cycle of silence, express strict positions and take serious steps regarding the unfolding brutal torture based on discrimination, collective revenge and dehumanization to which Palestinian civilians, male and female, are exposed.
In his report, he stressed the need to oblige Israel to end all its crimes against Palestinian prisoners and detainees, including the crimes of torture, inhuman treatment, and enforced disappearance that it practices against thousands of them.
Claims
Euro-Med renewed its call to the Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court, Karim Khan, to continue investigating all crimes committed by Israel against Palestinian prisoners and detainees, to expand the scope of investigation into individual criminal responsibility for these crimes to include all those responsible for them, and to expedite the issuance of arrest warrants against all of them.
He also called on the United Nations Special Rapporteur, concerned with the issue of torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment, to carry out the true role assigned to her in accordance with her mandate and to adhere to the rules of integrity and independence of her work, including carrying out immediate investigations and conducting country visits to find out the facts about what is being done to him. Male and female detainees are subject to serious violations and serious crimes.
The Observatory also called on the international community to put pressure on the Israeli authorities to release all Palestinian detainees who were arbitrarily arrested, and if they are brought to trial, to guarantee all fair trial procedures, and to return the remains of Palestinian prisoners and detainees who were killed in prisons and detention centers.
He also renewed his demand for the need to pressure Israel to immediately stop committing the crime of enforced disappearance against Palestinian prisoners and detainees from the Gaza Strip, and to immediately reveal all secret detention camps, disclose the names of all Palestinians it detains from the Gaza Strip, their fate and places of detention, and to bear its full responsibilities towards their lives. And their safety.
He also called for the announcement of the formation of an independent international investigation committee for the crimes committed during the ongoing military attack on the Gaza Strip, in parallel with enabling the independent international investigation committee for the occupied Palestinian territory formed in 2021 to carry out its work, including ensuring its access to the besieged Strip and opening the necessary investigations into it. All crimes and violations committed against Palestinians in Gaza.
Since October 7, 2023, Israel has been waging a comprehensive war on the Gaza Strip, which has resulted, to date, in more than 122,000 martyrs and wounded, thousands of missing persons, an unprecedented humanitarian catastrophe, and massive destruction in residential neighborhoods, infrastructure, and hospitals.
Israel continues its aggression, ignoring a Security Council resolution to stop the fighting immediately, and orders from the Court of Justice to stop its attack on Rafah and take immediate measures to prevent acts of “genocide and improve the humanitarian situation” in the Strip.