(MENAFN- Jordan Times)
AMMAN - Amid ongoing allegations of human rights abuses in Israeli prisons, the European-Mediterranean Human Rights Monitor has released a report titled“UN Special Rapporteur on Torture Should Be Dismissed for Bias and Deliberate Failure to Perform Duties.”
The report calls for the removal of Alice Jill Edwards from her role as Special Rapporteur on Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment.
The human rights organisation accused Edwards of failing to address the severe crimes against Palestinian detainees and prisoners in Israeli jails with the necessary objectivity and efficiency.
Human Rights abuses
According to the Euro-Med Human Rights Monitor, it is now well-established that thousands of Palestinian detainees and prisoners have been subjected to severe, systematic, and widespread torture, ill-treatment, rape, and other forms of sexual violence, particularly since October 7, at the hands of the Israeli army and the Israeli Prison Service.
The organisation has gathered testimonies from female detainees recently released after various periods of detention. These accounts describe severe mistreatment, including beatings, threats of rape, forced nudity, strip searches in front of male soldiers, and verbal harassment.
Additionally, the Israeli army allegedly robbed detainees of their money and belongings, tied them up, blindfolded them, held them in cages amid freezing weather, and denied access to food, medicine, essential medical care, and menstrual products, the organisation reported.
Israeli media recently broadcast leaked surveillance footage allegedly showing Israeli soldiers sexually assaulting a Palestinian male detainee at the Sde Teiman military base. The footage, aired by Israeli channel N12, has provoked intense controversy and condemnation. In response, US State Department Spokesperson Matthew Miller emphasised the need for“zero tolerance of any sexual abuse, rape, of any detainees, period.”
In reaction to the leaked video, Israeli finance minister Bezalel Smotrich has called on his social media for an“immediate criminal investigation” to determine the source of the leak, criticising it for“hugely damaging Israel internationally.” The Israeli military has since detained nine reservists for questioning in connection with the investigation into“suspected substantial abuse of a detainee.”
The situation has further escalated when Israeli protesters, in support of the detained reservists, broke into the Sde Teiman base.
“Welcome to Hell”
B'Tselem, an Israeli organisation documenting human rights violations committed by Israel in the Occupied Territories, released a report in August 2024 titled“Welcome to Hell.” This report includes interviews with 55 Palestinian prisoners held in Israeli detention centres since October 7.
Most prisoners recounted being assaulted, insulted and sexually abused by guards.“These conditions in Sde Teiman are not unique,” a spokesperson from the organisation said to international media, adding that similar accounts of sexual abuse, starvation and assault were reported from prisoners held in 16 different locations across Israel.
“Every witness account was almost identical, regardless of age, gender, or location,” the spokesperson said.
Testimonies gathered by B'Tselem described severe and systematic abuse faced by Palestinian detainees, including physical violence, psychological torture and sexual violence.
Detainees reported being beaten with wooden clubs, iron batons, and kicked. Dogs were used to attack and bite prisoners, resulting in serious injuries. Sleep deprivation was a common tactic, with detainees subjected to loud music, constant light and disruptive noise to prevent sleep. There were also reports of sexual humiliation, including attempted anal rape with objects and genital assaults using metal tools.
Failed performance
The Euro-Med Human Rights Monitor's report criticises Edwards for failing to address these severe abuses with the necessary objectivity and efficiency. Despite extensive documentation by various UN bodies and independent experts, the organisation accuses Edwards of not taking substantial action or raising international awareness.
“Edwards has remained silent and failed to address the horrifying, widespread, and systematic crimes against Palestinian prisoners and detainees in Israeli detention centres and prisons, especially since October 7, which raises serious concerns about her integrity in fulfilling her role,” the human rights organisation stated.
The report highlighted several“inconsistencies” in Edwards' approach. According to the report, her investigation into alleged abuses against Palestinians has been“publicly stagnant,” with her requests for action directed at“urging the Israeli government to investigate itself” – a move seen as insufficient, given Israel's historical reluctance to hold its own accountable for such violations, the human rights monitor stated.
The organisation reported that Edwards' public statements and reports are perceived as“disproportionately focused on the actions of Palestinian factions,” while“minimising Israeli crimes.”
“She never denounced Israel's serious crimes that have been proven to be committed against the Palestinian prisoners and detainees, including murder, killing under torture, rape, and other sexual assaults,” the report stated.
The organisation also pointed out that Edwards requested permission to visit Israel, but not the occupied Palestinian territories, and she also did not request nor mention the need for any visit to Palestine. This“discrepancy” further suggests bias, according to the human rights organisation, and questions her intention to address the violations,“given her failure to seek interviews with Palestinian victims,” the report said.
“Edwards addressed some Israeli legislations justifying violations against Palestinian detainees, such as the Unlawful Combatants
(detainees, classified as“unlawful combatants” under Israeli legislation, can be held for up to 75 days without judicial permission and 90 days without access to a lawyer or a trial), but she did not acknowledge how these laws contravene international human rights law.
Furthermore, Edwards' approach is criticised for lacking balanced empathy. Her letter to Israel included condolences for the victims of October 7, while her letter to Palestine lacked any expression of sympathy for the tens of thousands of civilians affected, mostly women and children.
“Edwards has shown a notable lack of engagement with Palestinian civil society organisations, which are essential for gathering relevant evidence for her mandate. This compromises the impartiality expected of any UN special rapporteur,” the organisation stated, calling for her resignation.
The organisation accuses her of undermining the credibility of the UN Human Rights Council by disregarding widespread and systematic abuses against Palestinian detainees and failing to act impartially.
The human rights organisation calls for urgent measures to ensure impartiality and accountability in addressing human rights violations as the international community watches closely.
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