UN-mandated experts called on Monday for an investigation into allegations of executions and rapes by Israeli forces against Palestinian women and girls in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank. They denounce “inhumane and degrading treatment,” sexual assaults and arbitrary detentions and executions.
The allegations made are serious. UN experts reported on Monday, February 19, that allegations of violence, particularly of a sexual nature, against Palestinian women and girls in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank are being attributed to Israeli forces. They call for an “independent and impartial investigation” and urge Israel to cooperate.
Arbitrary executions and detentions, sexual assaults, “inhumane” treatment… The seven independent experts appointed by the UN Human Rights Council are alarmed by “flagrant human rights violations” based on “credible allegations”.
To collect this information, the seven-member team of experts relied on various sources, including “witnesses from victims and eyewitnesses, but also from civil or international organizations working with civilians,” explains Reem Alsalem, United Nations Special Rapporteur on violence against women and Girls, their causes and consequences.
“We then compared this information with other sources to assess its credibility.” She states that she received this data directly via email, telephone or via tools such as Zoom and emphasizes that it is “often impossible to provide more detailed information as this could endanger the sources”.
Arbitrary executions and imprisonment
Women have been particularly affected since the beginning of the Gaza war. According to the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, 70% of the victims of the conflict between Israel and Hamas are women and children. According to the UN Women's Gender Alert, at least two mothers have been killed every hour since October 7.
Also read: When Unicef tries to find and help orphans in Gaza
Among the testimonies received, experts report women and girls “arbitrarily executed in Gaza, often alongside their family members, including their children,” while the victims were in refuges or trying to escape the forces.
“Some of them were holding pieces of white cloth [symbole de la paix, NDLR] when they were killed by the Israeli army or affiliated forces,” the statement said. Video published and verified by Middle East Eye website In January, a woman, Hala Rashid Abd al-Ati, was shown being shot dead as her grandson raised a white flag and tried to flee Gaza City.
In addition to the executions, the Israeli army has carried out “arbitrary detentions of hundreds of Palestinian women and girls,” including human rights defenders, journalists and humanitarian workers, since October 7, according to UN experts. The number of administrative detention centers has exploded. This emergency measure allows for indefinite detention without charge or trial. Witness statements report “inhumane and degrading treatment”: beatings, deprivation of food, medication and feminine hygiene products. A case was reported of women being held in a cage in Gaza, exposed to rain and cold without food.
Also read: Administrative detention of Palestinians in Israel: “We don’t know where he is”
Reem Alsalem draws attention to a point not included in the press release: some of those detained are considered by Israel to be “illegal combatants,” which puts them outside the scope of the law. She points out that “most of them have never appeared before a military court” and that “some women were arrested in their homes or on the streets in Gaza solely on allegations of Hamas ties and without any evidence.” I can therefore say that they were kidnapped by the Israeli authorities.”
At least two prisoners were raped
Other allegations against the Israeli army include “multiple forms of sexual assault.” The UN rapporteurs speak of rapes that at least two prisoners are said to have suffered. Other detainees described being subjected to humiliation and degrading treatment and being “stripped and searched by male Israeli army officers.” In this video from AJ Plus France, verified by France 24 Observers, we can see a group of women among the prisoners being stripped naked and gagged in a stadium.
The difficulty of documenting sexual violence is due to the few journalists and NGOs present in Gaza, as well as an overstretched staff in Gaza who face the same difficulties as the population. Pierre Motin, advocacy manager at the French NGO Platform for Palestine, also emphasizes the prevailing culture of silence and fear. “This aspect was unknown and difficult to document because it is difficult for the victims to describe what they experienced,” he explains. “It takes several weeks, even months, for findings to come to light in cases of sexual violence.”
These violations of international humanitarian law are punishable under international law of armed conflict. Several international bodies are already addressing the issue of human rights violations in the Palestinian territories. The United Nations Special Commission to Investigate the Occupied Palestinian Territories, established in May 2021, has opened two investigations in particular: one into the events of October 7 and their consequences and the other into allegations of sexual assault against Israelis or Palestinians. “Working with this independent commission is essential to solving these crimes,” emphasizes Reem Alsalem.
Legal remedies
Further legal action will be taken at the international level. In March 2021, the International Criminal Court (ICC) opened an investigation into alleged war crimes in the Palestinian territories during the 2014 Gaza War by Israeli forces, Hamas and Palestinian armed groups. “The elements provided by UN experts must be added to this investigation, as the ICC Prosecutor's Office is responsible for investigating all violations of human rights and international humanitarian law in Gaza,” demands Pierre Motin of the French NGO Platform for Palestine. “We hope that France will clearly express its support for this investigation, as it did for the ICC investigation in Ukraine.”
Another case is currently before the International Court of Justice (ICJ), the main judicial body of the United Nations. The court is investigating allegations that the Israeli military committed “acts of genocide” against the Palestinian people in Gaza, a lawsuit filed by South Africa last month. The experts interviewed by France 24 believe that the allegations reported by the UN experts could be included in this investigation.
Also read Genocide, “war” or “against humanity” crimes… What words for the war between Israel and Hamas?
Me Johann Soufi, a lawyer specializing in international criminal law, insists on the need for Israel to open an investigation as soon as “the allegations and the conclusions of the experts, based on statements they considered credible, are made public.” This United Nations report “reaffirms the obligation of Israeli courts to take matters into their own hands,” emphasizes the former head of the UNRWA legal office.
The lawyer also recalls that internal investigations may be launched within the Israeli army “to shed light on these facts, which are extremely serious for Israeli soldiers.” In addition, he recalls that the national courts of countries such as France, the United Kingdom or the United States, which have nationals in the Israeli army, “have the duty to investigate allegations of crimes committed by their nationals, regardless of the place of The said crime.” Other types of liability than that of the direct perpetrator can also be considered. “The responsibility of the superior can be claimed if he did not punish or prevent the crime.”
For its part, the Israeli mission to the United Nations in Geneva brushed aside these accusations in a message published on and off the record.
Since publishing the press release on Monday, Johann Soufi has expressed surprise at the “complete dissonance” between the “firm and legitimate condemnation of Hamas' rape allegations during the October 7 attack” and “the lack of responsive media and politicians.” in the face of similar allegations denounced by UN experts. The lawyer denounces this “double standard,” which “requires an identical legal, political and diplomatic response” for comparable situations. And Reem Alsalem concludes: “Our mission is to alert the world to the existence of these terrible situations and to emphasize that they are unacceptable.”