Palestinian Journo Details Sexual Torture by “Israeli” Forces at Sde Teiman
By Staff, Agencies
A Palestinian journalist has delivered a harrowing account of sexual assault and systematic torture carried out by “Israeli” forces inside the Sde Teiman detention center, a testimony that civil rights groups say reveals one of the most severe abuses documented against journalists.
According to the Palestinian Center for Journalists’ Protection, the journalist — who withheld his name for fear of reprisals against his family — suffered an intense psychological collapse that lasted more than two months. He had spent a total of 20 months in “Israeli” custody, including three months in Sde Teiman and another month in Ofer prison.
He was abducted on March 18, 2024, during the “Israeli” raid on al-Shifa hospital in Gaza City, despite wearing his press vest and carrying his camera. The center described his case as among the gravest violations committed against members of the press inside “Israeli” prisons.
The journalist reported that he and seven other detainees were subjected to group sexual assault after being tied, blindfolded, and dragged to an isolated area of the facility. The assault lasted nearly three minutes, after which he experienced a severe mental breakdown marked by hallucinations, disorientation and loss of cognitive focus.
Medical and legal experts who reviewed his testimony found his symptoms consistent with acute stress disorder and post-traumatic stress disorder. He said the abuse was not an isolated act but part of a systematic method designed to break detainees’ morale and force compliance.
He recounted additional forms of torture: the use of dogs to terrify prisoners, prolonged interrogations, transfers between facilities while blindfolded and restrained, sleep deprivation, food deprivation, electric shocks, religious insults and a near-total absence of medical care. He described his 100 days in Sde Teiman as “inhuman.”
Sexual abuse, he said, was conducted in hidden rooms in full view of “Israeli” officers, with no oversight or accountability. He added that the torture intensified once interrogators learned he was a journalist, accusing him of disseminating “misleading information” and threatening him with a life sentence.
His testimony also detailed suffocating conditions inside the detention center: overcrowded cells, rampant disease, extreme shortages of food and water, restrictions on prayer, and scenes of detainees — including doctors and academics — dying under unexplained circumstances.
“We spent autumn and winter in torn summer clothes, sleeping on the floor,” he said. “We entered these prisons alive and left with broken bodies and shattered souls. Those who did not die came out destroyed forever.”
The Palestinian Center for Journalists’ Protection said the assault meets the definition of rape and sexual torture under the 1984 Convention Against Torture. It noted that, if proven systematic, the acts constitute war crimes under Article 8 of the Rome Statute and crimes against humanity under Article 7. It also stressed that the abuse violates Common Article 3 of the Geneva Conventions and directly targets journalists, a protected civilian group.
The center called for the case to be immediately referred to the International Criminal Court for an independent investigation, prosecution of those responsible, and urgent medical and psychological treatment for survivors, in addition to protections for witnesses.
The testimony adds to a growing body of evidence documenting systematic torture of Palestinian detainees in “Israeli” prisons. Last month, the Palestinian Center for Human Rights published findings accusing “Israel” of carrying out an “organized and systematic practice of sexual torture” against detainees from Gaza over the past two years.
Sde Teiman drew international attention in August 2024 after leaked footage showed “Israeli” soldiers sexually assaulting a Palestinian prisoner. The victim was hospitalized with broken ribs, a punctured lung, and severe rectal injuries. While at least five soldiers were charged with aggravated abuse, none were detained or placed under any legal restrictions.
Human rights groups report that 98 Palestinians have died in “Israeli” prisons and detention centers since October 7, 2023 — an unprecedented figure that rights experts say reflects the collapse of detention standards and the near-total absence of medical and legal oversight.
