GENEVA, March 23, 2026 (WAFA) – The UN Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Occupied Palestinian Territory since 1967, Francesca Albanese, warned that the systematic use of torture practiced by Israel against Palestinians has become a central tool in ongoing grave violations, amid what she described as long-standing impunity and political cover.
In a report submitted to the United Nations Human Rights Council, Albanese stated that since the beginning of the recent escalation, the Israeli prison system has effectively become a laboratory for severe and deliberate abusive practices.
She added that practices once hidden are now conducted openly, describing a system founded on humiliation, pain, and systematic abuse, endorsed at the highest political levels.
Albanese pointed out that policies pursued by Israeli officials, including Minister Itamar Ben Gvir, have contributed to entrenching torture and collective punishment practices, alongside detention conditions she described as inhumane.
She stressed that these violations cannot be justified even in times of war, calling for the accountability of those responsible, including before the International Criminal Court.
According to the report, since October 2023, more than 18,500 Palestinians have been detained in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including at least 1,500 children, while thousands remain in detention without charge or trial, with cases of enforced disappearance and the deaths of around 100 detainees recorded during detention.
The report also documented that detainees were subjected to harsh practices, including severe beating, starvation, humiliation, and other forms of inhuman treatment.
In 2025, the United Nations Committee Against Torture expressed concern over what it described as a “de facto State policy of organized and widespread torture and ill-treatment,” noting that these practices have intensified since October 2023.
Albanese warned that a system long used to subjugate and humiliate Palestinians has evolved into something resembling a firmly established state doctrine, adding that these policies are defended by political actors, justified by legal institutions, and ignored by governments that continue to support Israel.
The report indicated that these practices are not confined to prisons but extend to a harsh, coercive environment, including bombardment, forced displacement, and the destruction of homes and infrastructure across Gaza, the West Bank, and East Jerusalem.
She concluded by emphasizing that international law clearly prohibits torture under any circumstances, calling for an immediate end to these practices, full accountability, and access for international monitors and human rights organizations.
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