Detainees from Gaza held in Israeli prisons have reported severe torture and degrading treatment, including forced alcohol consumption, scalding with boiling water, and deliberate starvation, according to two Palestinian rights groups.
In a joint statement on Thursday, the Palestinian Prisoners Society and the Commission of Detainees’ Affairs said their legal teams collected harrowing testimonies during July visits to several Israeli detention sites, including Ketziot, Ofer, Sde Teiman, and the Russian Compound.
“These testimonies reflect unprecedented levels of torture during arrest and interrogation,” the groups said, describing ongoing “medical crimes, deliberate starvation, and systematic abuse inside prisons and military camps.”
Among the accounts, one detainee reported being forced to drink alcohol, a practice prohibited in Islam, while another said he attempted to end his life after an Israeli interrogator falsely claimed his entire family had been killed.
That information was later proven false.
Other detainees described being severely beaten while stripped, burnt with boiling water, and attacked by dogs.
The groups said dozens of detainees have died due to torture, while many more remain forcibly disappeared.
“These testimonies represent only a fraction of the hundreds documented by Gaza detainees,” the statement added.
“The treatment amounts to war crimes and crimes against humanity.”
The groups urged international bodies to open investigations and hold Israeli officials accountable.
