Israel's Use Of Torture

In August 2024, the Israeli human rights organization B’Tselem released “Welcome to Hell: The Israeli Prison System as a Network of Torture Camps.” Based on testimonies from 55 Palestinians held in Israeli custody following October 7, 2023, almost all of whom were released without being charged, the report documented widespread physical and psychological abuse in Israeli prisons and detention facilities.

According to B’Tselem, more than a dozen military and civilian detention facilities had effectively become torture camps, where prisoners were subjected to systematic mistreatment. Former detainees described severe beatings, rape and other sexual violence, attacks by dogs, electric shocks, forced nudity, humiliation, deliberate starvation, sleep deprivation, and denial of medical treatment, legal access, and religious worship. One former detainee recalled arriving at Megiddo Prison and hearing a soldier say, “Welcome to hell.”

In January 2026, B’Tselem published a follow-up report titled “Living Hell,” incorporating 21 additional testimonies. The organization found that the abuses documented in 2024 had continued and become even more extensive, demonstrating that the mistreatment was not confined to the initial months of the war.

Conditions inside the facilities included severe overcrowding, inadequate medical treatment, and extreme food deprivation. Jewish Currents reported that daily food rations were reduced to about 800 calories per prisoner in late 2023. In September 2025, Israel's Supreme Court ordered prison authorities to provide Palestinian detainees with adequate food, yet Reuters reported in February 2026 that prisoners continued to experience severe hunger despite the ruling.

Among those who died in custody was 17-year-old Walid Khaled Ahmed, who died at Megiddo Prison on March 22, 2025. His autopsy revealed extreme malnutrition and signs of serious illness, including intestinal inflammation and scabies. An Israeli doctor who observed the autopsy identified starvation as the likely leading cause of death, although no single definitive cause was established. The Commission of Detainees' Affairs and the Palestinian Prisoners' Society held the prison administration responsible for what they described as a "compound crime" involving starvation and denial of medical care. An Israeli judge subsequently closed the investigation, finding insufficient evidence to establish that his death resulted from a criminal act.

The number of Palestinians reported dead in Israeli custody has also continued to rise. B’Tselem's original report documented at least 60 deaths, while its January 2026 follow-up identified 84 prisoners who had died. Jewish Currents reported that the number had reached 104 by June 2026. These figures reflect documented deaths under differing reporting criteria, and restrictions on independent access to detention facilities make it difficult to establish the full toll. The true number may be higher and may never be fully known.

Former detainees have also described sexual torture involving dogs, including allegations that Israeli soldiers used the animals to rape prisoners. In November 2025, the Palestinian Center for Human Rights (PCHR) published testimony from a 35-year-old man who alleged that Israeli soldiers used a dog to rape him at the Sde Teiman military detention facility. Novara Media reported testimony from Palestinian lawyer Fadi Saif al-Din Bakr, who said he witnessed a similar assault against another detainee. A June 2026 Al Jazeera documentary presented further accounts, including testimony from Mohammed Zaki al-Bakri, who alleged that Israeli soldiers used a dog to rape him and other restrained prisoners.

In April 2026, Novara Media reported that Israeli analyst Shaiel Ben-Ephraim had spoken with two guards from Sde Teiman, one of whom reportedly witnessed an assault involving a dog, while the other said he had heard about the practice from colleagues. A 2026 United Nations communication also documented allegations of rape involving a dog and attacks on detainees' genitals.

Independent oversight of Israeli detention facilities has also been severely restricted. The International Committee of the Red Cross has been denied access to Palestinian detainees since October 2023, preventing routine monitoring of their treatment and welfare. Thousands have also been held under administrative detention or other procedures that restrict access to legal counsel and ordinary judicial safeguards.

B’Tselem attributes the widespread abuses to Israeli government policies and prison authorities rather than isolated actions by individual guards. The Israel Prison Service has rejected allegations of systematic unlawful abuse, maintaining that it operates in accordance with the law and investigates complaints.

Establishing responsibility requires more than acknowledging these findings. A thorough, independent international investigation is essential to determine the full extent of the violations and identify those responsible. Anyone found to have authorized, carried out, or knowingly permitted these abuses, including senior Israeli officials, must face appropriate legal consequences under international law. Such investigations must be conducted without political interference, with full access to detention facilities, relevant records, and witnesses. Victims must also have access to justice and meaningful reparations, ensuring that accountability extends beyond those directly involved to the institutions and officials responsible for overseeing their treatment.

EARTH FUTURE ACTION

ISRAEL'S USE OF TORTURE