The Israel Defence Forces (IDF) have been accused (and have been guilty of!) various crimes over the years, but few have accused Israeli troops in the occupied territories of committing sexual crimes against Palestinians.
However, here is a shocking (if true!) report on Israel’s most popular news website, Ynet, citing a “damning” CNN report broadcast on 9 September:
A CNN investigative report aired Thursday slammed the treatment of Palestinian children by IDF soldiers.
The report included uncorroborated charges of sexual abuse against Palestinian youngsters while in IDF custody.
The CNN report featured an unidentified Palestinian boy claiming that IDF forces attempted to insert an object into his rectum after he was arrested. The unidentified youngster said a dozen officers were standing around and laughing while he was being interrogated, stopping only when their commander stepped into the room.
The IDF could not offer a response to the charge because the youngster’s name was not provided. The army did say that a complaint should be filed if such cases ever happened.
Give a gift subscription to the New Statesman this Christmas from just £49“Any claim regarding improper conduct by soldiers or police officers will be thoroughly examined by the relevant officials,” the army said. “We cannot address general claims on the subject in the absence of a specific complaint.”
According to [the] human rights group Defence of Children International, cited in the CNN report, five Palestinian children said they were sexually abused by the Israeli army. No evidence or further information was provided.
I cannot find any reference to this story, or any follow-ups on the allegations, on any mainstream news websites, perhaps because the claims are “uncorroborated” — or, perhaps, because of the pro-Israeli bias of much of the western media.
You can watch the full CNN report by Paula Hancocks here.
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