DaysofPal – Harrowing and documented accounts of sexual abuse against Palestinian detainees in Israeli prisons have surfaced in recent weeks, exposing violations that had been concealed for years out of fear and silence.
The testimonies point to acts of sexual violence and severe physical and psychological abuse carried out not as isolated incidents but as part of a deliberate and systematic policy within the Israeli prison system. These revelations come amid continued international silence and political inaction, which critics say enable impunity.
The British outlet Middle East Eye recently published testimonies from two formerly detained Palestinians who spoke about sexual abuse and torture they endured while in Israeli custody. Human rights groups have characterized these practices as part of an institutionalized pattern rather than individual misconduct.
Testimony of Journalist Sami Al-Sa’i
Palestinian journalist Sami Al-Sa’i, who was arrested in February 2024 and later placed under administrative detention without charge or trial, said the abuse he experienced constituted a “fully-fledged crime.”
According to his account, Al-Sa’i was taken from the prison clinic to a closed room where he was subjected to severe beating, humiliation, and sexual assault while restrained and blindfolded, in the presence of several prison guards.
He said the abuse was accompanied by threats against him and his family, as well as mockery of his work as a journalist.
Al-Sa’i emphasized that the guards acted with complete confidence and without fear of accountability. “What happened to me was not an exception,” he said. “It reflects what detainees face daily. Silence was suffocating, but remaining silent about crime is itself another crime.”
He added that detainees refer to such treatment as a “reception,” indicating that it is a recurring practice used upon the arrival of new prisoners to break them psychologically from the outset.
Second Testimony: Sexual Violence as a Tool of Humiliation
In a separate testimony, another former detainee, speaking under a pseudonym, described being subjected to sexual abuse during a night raid on his cell, after detainees were restrained and transferred to areas he said were beyond camera surveillance.
He stated that the abuse was not an isolated incident but part of a broader system of daily mistreatment that included starvation, denial of medical care, degrading searches, and sexual violence, all carried out in an environment where guards treated such violations as permissible conduct.
International and Human Rights Accusations
These testimonies coincide with investigations by United Nations committees accusing Israel of using sexual violence against Palestinians as a method of warfare. Israel’s own human rights organization, B’Tselem, has described Israeli prisons as a “network of torture camps.”
According to documented human rights data, Israeli forces have arrested more than 20,000 Palestinians since October 2023. At least 110 detainees have died in custody as a result of torture and medical neglect, while thousands remain imprisoned, including women and children.
Nahed Al-Fakhouri, director of the Prisoners’ Media Office, said the testimonies “unequivocally condemn the Israeli occupation and place it among regimes that use sexual violence as a systematic tool of repression.”
“These are not allegations,” Al-Fakhouri told reporters. “They are repeated, consistent accounts that confirm sexual violence is being used inside prisons to humiliate and break detainees’ will, carried out with the knowledge of prison administrations and under political and security protection.”
He stressed that the repetition of testimonies, similarity of methods, and multiple locations of abuse demonstrate an official policy rather than individual violations, adding that such acts amount to war crimes and crimes against humanity under international law.
Al-Fakhouri warned that fear and social stigma prevent many survivors from speaking publicly, meaning the true scale of violations is likely far greater. He called for an immediate and independent international investigation and for political and security leaders to be held accountable, warning that continued international silence amounts to complicity.
Despite attempts at denial and suppression, the testimonies of former detainees indicate that Israeli prisons operate within a comprehensive system of abuse, where sexual violence is used as a deliberate tool of humiliation and coercion.
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