NEW YORK, Friday, September 8, 2023 (WAFA) – The United Nations has called for an investigation into the forced strip-search of five Palestinian women by Israeli occupation soldiers in the occupied West Bank city of Hebron during a raid on an apartment building.

The incident took place in the early morning of July 10, and the testimonies of three of the women were first collected by Israeli human rights group B’Tselem the following day, though an extensive report was only published this week by both B’Tselem and Haaretz.

According to the report, 25-30 soldiers, some of them wearing masks, entered three adjoining apartments, home to the extended Ajlouni family in south Hebron. During the search, two female soldiers with rifles and an attack dog reportedly forced five women of the family, aged between 24 and 53, to undress, threatening to unleash the dog if they did not comply.

“We would stand against any form of collective punishment,” UN deputy spokesperson Farhan Haq told reporters at a press briefing on Wednesday. “This reported incident needs to be looked at, investigated thoroughly.”

M.N