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<h1 class="gmail-reader-title">To evade own crimes, 'Israel' blocks UN Oct. 7 sexual assault probe</h1>
<div class="gmail-credits gmail-reader-credits">Al Mayadeen English</div>
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<div class="gmail-reader-estimated-time">January 8, 2025<br></div>
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<div class="gmail-moz-reader-content gmail-reader-show-element"><div id="gmail-readability-page-1" class="gmail-page"><p>Israeli
occupation forces are denying a UN request to investigate October 7
sexual assault allegations out of fear that it could open the door to an
inquiry into the abuse of Palestinians.</p><img src="cid:ii_m5oeo14r0" alt="8bb4f806-fed2-4ed4-a84b-dfacb2e32cac.jpg" width="460" height="307"><br><div><ul id="gmail-content-slick-0"><div aria-hidden="false"><li>
Israeli soldiers gather at the gate to the Sde Teiman
military base, as settlers protest in support of soldiers being
questioned for detainee abuse, on July 29, 2024 (<em>AP</em>)
</li></div></ul>
<p>The Israeli occupation has rejected a request from the United Nations
to investigate allegations of sexual violence allegedly committed by
Resistance fighters during October 7's Operation al-Aqsa Flood. </p>
<p>The Israeli regime is concerned that the UN probe would not only
prove the claims as false but would also make way for proving the
allegations of sexual violence perpetrated against Palestinians in
Israeli detention facilities. These claims have been corroborated by the
release of footage showing a group of Israeli soldiers sexually
assaulting a Palestinian detainee in the <a href="https://english.almayadeen.net/news/politics/sde-teiman-chaos-depicts-disintegration-of-iof-chain-of-comm" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Sde Teman</a> detention camp.</p>
<p>Pramila Patten, the UN’s Special Representative on Sexual Violence in
Conflict, had sought authorization to investigate claims against Hamas.
However, she emphasized that any investigation would also need to
address <a href="https://english.almayadeen.net/news/politics/schism-in--israel---detained-soldiers-accused-of-rape-called" target="_blank" rel="noopener">allegations involving Israeli soldiers</a>. The Israeli occupation declined this condition, according to a report by <em>Haaretz</em>.</p>
<p>Patten has urged the Israeli regime to sign a framework agreement
with the UN to implement measures addressing sexual violence in
conflict. Despite the refusal, her office has announced plans to explore
a future mission to the region.</p>
<h2>Israeli sexual assault of Palestinian detainees</h2>
<p>“The Office is exploring a future mission to the region after
receiving an invitation from the Palestinian Authority regarding reports
of conflict-related sexual violence against Palestinians as well as
outreach by the Government of Israel for a follow-up visit on the 7
October attacks and their aftermath,” Patten's office stated.</p>
<p>However, her team warned Israeli representatives that their refusal
to allow investigations into reported crimes attributed to Israeli
personnel could have serious consequences. During a meeting with
Israel's Women’s Network in New York, they noted that this stance might
result in the occupation being added to the UN’s blacklist of entities
responsible for <a href="https://english.almayadeen.net/news/politics/torture-in-israeli-prisons--strapped-to-beds--stripped-of-cl" target="_blank" rel="noopener">sexual violence</a> in conflict—potentially leaving Hamas off the list.</p>
<p>This development follows statements from Israeli authorities that no
allegations of rape or sexual assault had been filed in connection with
the events of October 7. Moran Gaz, a former lead prosecutor in the
Israeli Southern District and a member of Team 7.10, revealed in an
interview for <em>Ynet </em>that extensive investigations had found no basis for such claims.</p>
<p>The controversy echoes similar incidents from March 2023 when UN
experts discredited allegations of sexual violence by Resistance
fighters, deeming them unverified or outright false. Other widely
circulated claims of atrocities, including reports of babies being
beheaded or burned, were also debunked but continued to be used as fuel
to the fire of anti-Palestinian sentiment.</p>
<p><strong>Read next: <a href="https://english.almayadeen.net/news/politics/israeli-prosecutor-confirms-no-rape-charges-from-oct-7-opera">Israeli prosecutor confirms no rape charges from Oct.7 operation filed</a></strong></p>
<h2>UN urges for a probe into Israeli violations</h2>
<p>The United Nations called in August for a comprehensive investigation
into human rights abuses against Palestinian detainees in Israeli
prisons following<span> </span><a href="https://english.almayadeen.net/news/politics/leaked-video-shows-israelis-sexually-assaulting-palestinian" target="_blank" rel="noopener">leaked footage of Israeli occupation forces (IOF)</a><span> </span>sexually abusing a Palestinian prisoner from Gaza at the notorious Israeli concentration camp Sde Teiman.</p>
<p>Farhan Haq, the UN deputy spokesperson, emphasized the need for a
detailed probe into reports of systemic torture and degrading treatment
of Palestinian detainees by Israeli authorities.</p>
<p>This call for investigation follows a report from the Israeli human
rights organization B'Tselem, which revealed troubling testimonies from
55 former Palestinian detainees. The report described "inhuman
conditions" and detailed that over a dozen Israeli prison facilities are
functioning as "de facto torture camps."</p>
<p>The UN official emphasized during a press conference that the UN's
call for an investigation was in response to the B'Tselem report,
stating that "all of these allegations of violations of basic human
rights norms must be thoroughly investigated, and there should be
accountability."</p>
<p>“We also believe that whenever human rights norms are violated to
this extent, there needs to be follow-up. Our human rights colleagues
dealing with Israel and the occupied Palestinian territory will continue
to follow up on all of these allegations,” Haq stressed.</p>
<p>Israeli<span> </span><em>Channel 12</em><span> </span>broadcast<span> </span><a href="https://english.almayadeen.net/news/politics/leaked-sde-teiman-video-proves-iof-have-documented-crime-arc" target="_blank" rel="noopener">surveillance footage of a squad</a><span> </span>of
IOF selecting a detainee from among more than 30 others who are all
blindfolded and lying on the ground. The inmate is then led to a corner.</p>
<p>According to the report, "It is clear that they know about the
surveillance cameras, and try to hide their act with shields. The video
contains documentation of the felony of the reservists: the act of
sodomy in these circumstances."</p>
<p>The inmate then bled and was transferred to the hospital some hours
later, with his condition described as "complex". "The injury was caused
by the insertion of an object," the station stated, citing a medical
report.</p></div></div></div>
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