A United Nations commission of experts has accused Israel of committing serious human rights violations, including the use of sexual violence as a means of oppressing and controlling the Palestinian population.
Israel has strongly rejected the allegations, calling the commission biased and accusing it of applying different standards to Israel compared to other parties involved in the conflict.
The report, issued on Thursday, March 13, stated that sexual and gender-based violence “has risen in frequency and severity.” It documents cases of sexual assault and rape, as well as instances where individuals were forced to undress in public.
These acts, according to the commission, were either carried out on direct orders or with the tacit approval of military and civilian leadership.
In addition to these allegations, the report highlights the destruction of health centres in the Gaza Strip by Israeli forces. It also claims that the import of medicines and essential supplies for pregnant women and newborns was blocked, leading to preventable deaths among women and children. The commission argues that these actions constitute crimes against humanity and that the prevention of births meets the criteria for genocide.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has dismissed the accusations, issuing a strong response, “The anti-Israeli circus called the UN ‘Human Rights Council’ has long been exposed as an anti-Semitic, corrupt, terror-supporting, and irrelevant body,” he said in a statement.
“Instead of focusing on the crimes against humanity and war crimes committed by the Hamas terrorist organization in the most severe massacre against the Jewish people since the Holocaust, the UN once again chooses to attack the State of Israel with false accusations, including unfounded allegations of sexual violence.”
Meanwhile, Navi Pillay, chair of the Independent International Commission of Inquiry on the Occupied Palestinian Territory, defended the findings, stating,
“The evidence collected by the commission reveals a deplorable increase in sexual and gender-based violence. There is no escape from the conclusion that Israel has employed sexual and gender-based violence against Palestinians to terrorize them and perpetuate a system of oppression that undermines their right to self-determination.”
The commission based its findings on interviews with victims and witnesses, as well as analysis of photographic and video evidence. Its investigation covers events in the Gaza Strip, the occupied West Bank, and East Jerusalem since October 7, 2023.
On that day, Palestinian militant groups launched a large-scale attack on Israel, killing approximately 1,200 people and abducting around 250 individuals to Gaza. The commission had previously released a report in June 2024 detailing acts of violence and torture committed during the attack.
According to the commission, Israel did not respond to requests for information.
The UN Human Rights Council established this independent panel of experts in 2021 to investigate alleged violations of international humanitarian and human rights law in Israel and the occupied Palestinian territories. The commission asserts that its work aims to hold Israel accountable before international courts.
