Violent clash over torture of Palestinian detainees reveals extent of Israeli political polarization

1 / 2
The Israeli military is holding nine soldiers for questioning following allegations of "substantial abuse" of a detainee at the Sde Teiman military base, where Israel has been holding Palestinian prisoners throughout the war in Gaza. (AP)
2 / 2
Right-wing Israelis demonstrate next to the Sde Teman military base near Beersheba on July 29, 2024, against the detention for questioning of military reservists who were suspected of abuse of a detainee following the October 7 attack in Israel. (AFP photo)
Short Url
Updated 01 August 2024
Follow

Violent clash over torture of Palestinian detainees reveals extent of Israeli political polarization

  • Investigation into maltreatment of a Palestinian in a military detention facility sparks rightwing protests
  • New accusations include use of waterboarding, electrocution, and sleep deprivation on Palestinians in Israeli custody

ATHENS: Southern Israel’s Sde Teiman detention facility was rocked by protests on Monday when dozens of protestors — including several far-right members of the Knesset — clashed with military police.

The protestors, waving Israeli flags and chanting “shame,” were condemning the arrest and detention of nine Israel Defense Forces reservists accused of subjecting a detained Palestinian man to abuse so severe it resulted in his hospitalization.




Protests have been held in support of the detained reservists despite mounting allegations of the maltreatment of Palestinians. (Reuters/AFP)

As domestic political tensions continue to rise and the war in Gaza shows no sign of stopping, many are wondering whether the widely reported torture of Palestinians in Israeli custody will only deepen the political rift in Israel.

The protest at Sde Teiman was expected, especially given the rhetoric of Israeli lawmakers regarding the treatment of detained Palestinians. Israel’s far-right Minister of National Security Itamar Ben-Gvir took to X on Monday to post: “Take your hands off our reservists!”




For Israel's right-wing extremist finance minister Bezalel Smotrich, the military reservists charged with torturing and maltreating Palestinian prisoners are “heroes.” (AFP photo)

Some Israeli politicians’ brazen endorsement of torture is even more shocking. When asked by a fellow member of the Knesset whether there was any justification for sodomizing a detainee, Likud Party MK Hanoch Mildwidsky shouted: “Yes! If he is a Nukhba (Hamas militant), everything is legitimate to do!”

Bezalel Smotrich, the minister of finance, also condemned the arrests on X, demanding the release of the reservists — whom he called “IDF heroes” — and calling for those who ordered their arrest to be sacked.




This undated photo taken in the winter of 2023 and provided by Breaking the Silence, a whistleblower group of former Israeli soldiers, shows blindfolded Palestinians captured in the Gaza Strip in a detention facility on the Sde Teiman military base in southern Israel. (Breaking The Silence via AP)

Videos posted on social media also showed far-right parliamentarian Zvi Sukkot of the Religious Zionist Party and Heritage Minister Amichay Eliyahu of Otzma Yehudit entering the detention facility at Sde Teiman.

The Sde Teiman protest escalated after protestors realized the detained reservists were being held at the Beit Lid military base north of Tel Aviv, where they attempted to break into the detention center to release the soldiers.

Several members of the reservists’ unit also joined in the protest in full military uniform, though their faces were covered.




People lift placards bearing portraits of Palestinians currently detained by Israel during a protest in solidarity with them and with the residents of the Gaza Strip, in Ramallah city in the occupied West Bank on July 30, 2024. (AFP)

Allegations of the torture of Palestinian detainees by Israeli forces have been mounting for years — even more so since the Hamas-led Oct. 7 attack on southern Israel that sparked the ongoing war in Gaza.

The UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights issued a report on Wednesday alleging the death of at least 53 Palestinian detainees in Israeli custody since the war began, as well as the use of waterboarding, electrocution, and sleep deprivation.

 

 

The Israel Prison Service has denied all of the allegations, claiming that Israeli prisons do not violate the rights of prisoners.

The OHCHR report added that more than 9,400 Palestinians had been detained in Israel from October to the end of June, many of whom had not been granted access to a lawyer.

Since Oct. 7, thousands of Palestinians — including medics, patients, residents and captured fighters — have been taken from Gaza to Israel, “usually shackled and blindfolded,” the OHCHR report said.

INNUMBERS

53 Palestinian detainees believed to have died in Israeli custody since Oct.7. 

9,400 Palestinians detained in Israel from October to the end of June.

Source: OHCHR

Thousands more have been detained in the West Bank and Israel. “They have generally been held in secret, without being given a reason for their detention, access to a lawyer or effective judicial review,” OHCHR added.

Testimonies for the report suggested that Israel had subjected prisoners to “a range of appalling acts, such as waterboarding and the release of dogs on detainees,” UN human rights chief Volker Turk said in a statement accompanying the report.

Many released Palestinians reported treatment “including severe beatings, electrocution, being forced to remain in stress positions for prolonged periods, or waterboarding.” The report said detainees had been subjected to blackmail, “being burnt with cigarettes, and given hallucinogenic pills.”




Palestinian Faouzi Abdel Aal, 21, lies at the Nasser hospital in Khan Yunis in the southern Gaza Strip where he will receive treatment for his injuries, after being reportedly released from an Israeli detention center into Gaza via the Karem Shalom gate, on July 25, 2024. (AFP)

It said there were “reasonable grounds to believe” that since Oct. 7, Israel and Palestinian armed groups had “committed gross violations and abuses … of the rights to life, liberty and freedom from torture and other ill-treatment.”

These included the use of “rape and other forms of sexual violence,” warning the abuses may amount to war crimes. Besides calling for the abuses to cease, the OHCHR urged all parties to “immediately end all forms of arbitrary detention, including the holding of hostages.”


READ MORE

• The children in Israel’s prisons

Palestinian detainees say they faced abuse in Israeli jails

Rights advocates denounce ‘systemic abuse’ in Israeli prisons

Israel does not need a death penalty — they execute us in the streets already, say Palestinians


A summary of the report referred to a “staggering” number of detainees — including men, women, children, journalists and human rights defenders.

“Detainees said they were held in cage-like facilities, stripped naked for prolonged periods, wearing only diapers. Their testimonies told of prolonged blindfolding, deprivation of food, sleep and water,” the summary said.




Bound and blindfolded Palestinian detainees are transported by Israeli soldiers in Gaza on Dec. 8, 2023. (Haaretz via AP/File)

Some detainees said that “their hands were tied and they were suspended from the ceiling,” while “some women and men also spoke of sexual and gender-based violence.”

According to the Prisoners Club, a Palestinian rights watchdog, around 9,600 Palestinians are currently held in Israeli jails, including hundreds under administrative detention where they can be kept for long periods without charge.

Not all Israelis have defended the alleged actions of the arrested reservists, nor do they support the use of torture and the violation of the human rights of Palestinian detainees.

 

 

“Are you in favor of rape? Is this part of Judaism?” Israeli human rights activist Yariv Oppenheimer replied to Belal Smotrich’s post on X.

Israeli writer Hen Mazzig condemned the protests, during which he said members of the media were verbally and physically assaulted.

“Israel’s investigation (of the reservists) must be allowed to proceed. This protest and the politicians encouraging it do NOTHING to help Israel. It only gives more material for those who hate us,” he posted on X on Monday.

 

 

Only a handful of Israeli government officials have condemned the protests and the storming of the detention facility, chief among them Defense Minister Yoav Gallant and Interior Minister Moshe Arbel.

“Even when angry, the laws apply to everyone — do not break into IDF bases and do not violate the laws of the State of Israel,” Gallant posted on X.

“I call on the Israeli Police to act immediately against the violators of the law and on all elected officials to refrain from irresponsible statements that drag the IDF into the political arena,” he said in a separate post.




Israeli soldiers and police clash with right wing protesters after they broke into the Beit Lid army base over the detention for questioning of military reservists who were suspected of abuse of a detainee, following the October 7 attack in Israel, on July 29, 2024 in Kfar Yona. (AFP)

In a statement on Monday, Herzi Halevi, chief of the general staff of the IDF, stated that the break-ins at IDF bases were “extremely serious and against the law.”

However, despite these condemnations, Israeli security forces at the IDF military bases were reportedly apathetic towards the protestors, and there have been no reported detentions or arrests of those involved.

The day after the protests saw a boisterous meeting in the Knesset after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu condemned the mob that broke into IDF bases.

Despite attempts by right-wing activists and lawmakers alike to have the arrested reservists released, eight of the original 10 reservists had their detentions extended this morning and will remain in custody until Sunday, according to the IDF.

The suspects may face charges of aggravated sodomy, assault, and conduct unbecoming of a soldier, among other charges.
 

 


Iran says killed eight militants since attack on police in province bordering Pakistan

Updated 6 sec ago
Follow

Iran says killed eight militants since attack on police in province bordering Pakistan

  • Militants from the Jaish Al-Adl group killed 10 police officers during a raid in Sistan-Baluchistan province on October 26
  • Sistan-Baluchistan, which straddles border with Afghanistan and Pakistan, is one of Iran’s most impoverished provinces

TEHRAN: Iran’s military has killed eight militants in an operation in the restive southeast since a deadly attack last month on a police station, state media reported Tuesday.
Militants from the Pakistan-based Jaish Al-Adl group killed 10 police officers during a raid on October 26 in Sistan-Baluchistan province — one of the deadliest attacks in the region in recent months.
Sistan-Baluchistan, which straddles the border with Afghanistan and Pakistan, is one of Iran’s most impoverished provinces.
It has long been a flashpoint for cross-border attacks by separatists and extremists, opposed to the authorities in Iran.
Revolutionary Guards commander Ahmad Shafahi said “a total of eight terrorists have been killed” since the beginning of operations in the province, according to the official IRNA news agency on Tuesday.
“Fourteen other terrorists have been arrested,” including key figures involved in the attack, he said, adding security forces seized weapons and ammunition.
Shortly after the attack in Taftan county, some 1,200 kilometers (745 miles) southeast of the capital Tehran, a report on the Tasnim news agency said four militants had been killed and four others arrested.
Late on Monday, IRNA quoted Guards ground forces commander Mohammad Pakpour as saying the attackers “were not Iranian,” though he did not specify their nationalities.
In early October, at least six people including police officers were killed in two separate attacks in the province.
Jaish Al-Adl said on Telegram they had carried out the attacks.
Formed in 2012 by Baluch separatists, the group is proscribed as a “terrorist organization” by both Iran and the United States.
 
 


Over 100 patients to be evacuated from Gaza, WHO says

Updated 43 min 41 sec ago
Follow

Over 100 patients to be evacuated from Gaza, WHO says

  • The patients will travel in a large convoy on Wednesday via the Kerem Shalom crossing

GENEVA: More than 100 patients including children suffering from trauma injuries and chronic diseases will be evacuated from Gaza on Wednesday in a rare transfer out of the war-ravaged enclave, a World Health Organization official said.
“These are ad hoc measures. What we have requested repeatedly is a sustained medevac (medical evacuation) outside of Gaza,” said Rik Peeperkorn, WHO representative for the Occupied Palestinian Territory, adding that 12,000 people were awaiting transfer.
The patients will travel in a large convoy on Wednesday via the Kerem Shalom crossing with Israel before flying to the United Arab Emirates, he added, and then a portion will travel to Romania.


Iran says two French detainees held in good conditions

Updated 05 November 2024
Follow

Iran says two French detainees held in good conditions

  • In recent years, Iran’s elite Revolutionary Guards have arrested dozens of dual nationals and foreigners, mostly on charges related to espionage and security

DUBAI: Two French citizens detained in Iran since May 2022 are in good health and being held in good detention conditions, Iran’s judiciary spokesperson Asghar Jahangir said on Tuesday, according to state media.
Last month, France’s foreign ministry said the conditions that three of its nationals were being held in by Iran were unacceptable.
“According to the relevant authorities, these two people have good conditions in the detention center and are in good health, so any claim regarding their conditions being abnormal is rejected,” Jahangir said.
The spokesperson was referring to Cecile Koehler and Jacques Paris, who he said were arrested on charges of espionage and will have their next court hearing on Nov. 24.
Jahangir did not mention the third French national detained in Iran. French media have disclosed only his first name, Olivier.
In recent years, Iran’s elite Revolutionary Guards have arrested dozens of dual nationals and foreigners, mostly on charges related to espionage and security.
Rights groups have accused Iran of trying to extract concessions from other countries through such arrests.


Israeli strikes in Gaza, West Bank leave dozens dead

Updated 36 min 1 sec ago
Follow

Israeli strikes in Gaza, West Bank leave dozens dead

  • Airstrikes in Gaza kill at least 30, Palestinian medics and media say
  • Israeli military says it ‘eliminated terrorists’ in latest operations

CAIRO/QABATIYAH: Israeli airstrikes across the Gaza Strip and West Bank have resulted in significant casualties, as conflict in the region intensifies.

Since Monday night, at least 30 Palestinians have been killed in Gaza, with strikes leveling buildings and tightening sieges on northern areas of the enclave, according to Palestinian media and medical sources.

In Beit Lahiya, northern Gaza, two houses were heavily damaged in an airstrike, killing at least 20 people late on Monday, as reported by WAFA and Hamas-linked media. The Gaza health ministry has not immediately verified this toll. Additionally, four people were reported dead in the central town of Al-Zawayda around midnight.

Meanwhile, six more Palestinians died in separate airstrikes on Gaza City and Deir Al-Balah. The Israeli military claimed that its forces had "eliminated terrorists" in central Gaza and Jabalia and uncovered weapons and explosives in the southern area of Rafah, where it had also dismantled "terrorist infrastructure."

Reports from the ground suggest that Israel's tactics aim to clear northern Gaza towns and refugee camps to establish buffer zones, a strategy Israel says has successfully neutralized hundreds of Palestinian fighters in Jabalia over the past month.

More than 43,300 Palestinians have died in Gaza over a year of fighting, and much of the region has been devastated. The conflict initially erupted following Hamas-led attacks on Israel on October 7, 2023, which killed around 1,200 Israelis and resulted in 251 hostages being taken to Gaza.

Violence has also erupted in the occupied West Bank. On Tuesday, Israeli airstrikes killed four Palestinians in separate incidents during two military operations.

In Tammun, near Tubas, two Palestinians died, one of whom was severely mutilated, according to the city’s governor, Ahmad Assad.

The health ministry in Ramallah confirmed the deaths, noting that the identity of one victim remains unverified and that the army is withholding the body.

In a separate airstrike in Qabatiyah near Jenin, two more Palestinian men, aged 40 and 38 and reportedly related, were killed, confirmed Kamal Abu Rubb, governor of Jenin.

The Israeli military did not immediately respond to inquiries about these operations. The West Bank has seen escalating violence since the onset of the Gaza conflict, with at least 754 Palestinians killed in the territory by Israeli forces or settlers, according to the health ministry in Ramallah.

In contrast, Palestinian attacks have claimed 24 Israeli lives during the same period, according to official Israeli sources.


Sudan paramilitaries kill 10 civilians: activists

Updated 05 November 2024
Follow

Sudan paramilitaries kill 10 civilians: activists

PORT SUDAN: Ten civilians were killed in the central Sudanese state of Al-Jazira, pro-democracy activists said on Tuesday, in an attack they blamed on the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces.
The Madani Resistance Committee, one of hundreds of volunteer groups coordinating aid across the country, said the RSF carried out the killings on Monday night in the village of Barborab, about 85 kilometers (50 miles) northeast of the state capital Wad Madani.