UN Panel Accuses Israel of Systematic Torture

Fri Dec 05 2025 07:19:25 GMT+0200 (Eastern European Standard Time)

A UN committee has reported evidence indicating that Israel is following a 'de facto state policy of organized and widespread torture' against detainees, raising serious human rights concerns.

The United Nations committee has strongly criticized Israel for its treatment of Palestinians in detention, alleging a systematic use of torture. With testimonies from both Israeli and Palestinian rights groups, the report highlights harrowing conditions in detention centers, documenting severe human rights violations that amount to war crimes and crimes against humanity. The committee urges Israel to conduct independent investigations and hold accountable those responsible for these actions.

The United Nations committee on torture says there is evidence that Israel is operating a de facto state policy of organised and widespread torture.

The committee regularly reviews the records of all countries which have signed the convention against torture, taking testimony from their governments, and from human rights groups.

During Israel's review both Israeli and Palestinian rights groups gave harrowing details about conditions in Israeli detention centres. It is alleged that thousands of Palestinians have been detained by Israel since the Hamas attacks of October 7th 2023.

Under Israel's laws on administrative detention and on Unlawful Combatants – suspects who cannot be classed as prisoner of war - they can be held for long periods without access to a lawyer or family members.

Many Palestinian families say they have waited months to even find out that a loved has been detained, amounting, the UN committee said, to enforced disappearance.

The committee was particularly critical of Israel's reported use of the Unlawful Combatants law to detain whole groups of Palestinians, including children, pregnant women, and the elderly.

But it is the reported conditions in detention which make the grimmest reading in the committee's conclusions, published today.

Palestinians, the evidence suggests, are regularly deprived of food and water, and subjected to severe beatings, attacks by dogs, electrocution, water boarding, and sexual violence. Some are allegedly permanently shackled, denied access to a toilet, and forced to wear diapers.

The committee concluded that such treatment amounts to war crimes and crimes against humanity. It said evidence of a de facto state policy of organised and widespread torture by Israel was one of the acts which constitute the crime of genocide under international law.

Israel has repeatedly rejected accusations that it is committing genocide against Palestinians in Gaza.

One committee member, Peter Vedel Kessing of Denmark, said he and his colleagues were deeply appalled by what they heard. Committee members also expressed grave concern over the lack of investigations or prosecutions into allegations of torture, calling on Israel to undertake independent investigations and ensure accountability for those responsible, including senior military officers.

During the committee hearings, Israel's ambassador, Daniel Meron, described the allegations of torture as disinformation and stated that Israel is committed to upholding its obligations in line with our moral values and principles, even in the face of the challenges posed by a terrorist organisation.

The findings come amid increasing pressure on Israel over its human rights record. A UN Human Rights Office recently indicated that the killing of two Palestinians by Israeli soldiers looked like a summary execution. Additionally, conditions in the Gaza Strip remain dire, with warnings about inadequate aid supplies and worsening living situations for displaced families.