The photo shows a large crowd of more than 200 people, crouched amid the rubble of Jabalia, in northern Gaza. Most are men, many are nearly naked, some are elderly, some are visibly injured. There is at least one child among them.
They were detained and most were ordered by the Israeli military to strip naked as they tried to flee their homes in the Jabalia refugee camp, then held for hours outdoors in the cold, witnesses told CNN .
Their tired faces give a glimpse of their misery. The men at the front are anxiously looking forward, while those at the back crane their necks to see what is happening.
The photo, taken in Jabalia on Friday (25), shows residents of the refugee camp who attempted to leave the area after being forced by the Israeli military to evacuate amid its ongoing ground operation there.
The photo was first shared on an Israeli Telegram channel; Although it is unclear who took the photo, several men in the photo told the CNN that Israeli soldiers were photographing them while they were detained.
THE CNN identified and spoke to five individuals seen in the photograph. One of them, Muhannad Khalaf, said he, his wife and young son were trying to escape the camp using a designated safe corridor when the Israeli military stopped them.
“We were all gathered in one place — men, women, children and elderly people. This was at 11 am. After five hours, at 4pm, they asked the women and children to come forward and carry all (our) bags and belongings,” he told CNN by phone, adding that the women and children were allowed to leave.
“After they left, the men were told to take off their clothes and strip down to their underwear. We obey. We sat in the cold for a few more hours and the weather was chilly. They were insulting us during this time, calling us names, laughing and taking photos,” the 27-year-old told CNN .
According to Khalaf, the men in the crowd seen in the photograph were asked to present themselves five at a time to be screened by the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) before being allowed to proceed to Gaza City, which was designated by the Israeli army as a safe place.
“Some individuals were selected for detention, while others were released. Most of us ended up in Gaza City. The situation was terrifying and deeply saddening, as we witnessed elderly men and injured individuals in danger, with no one showing compassion or mercy.”
A girl seen in the photograph is Jouri Abu Ward. The three-and-a-half-year-old girl was riding her bicycle, trying to get to Gaza City, when she and her father were stopped at the checkpoint.
Jouri’s father, Mohamad Abu Ward, told CNN who was forced to strip down to his underwear and was kept for eight hours next to Jouri. He said the girl was not forced to take off her clothes, but was unable to leave the area because she was alone with him. There was no food or water available to them. His wife and other children left the area early in the morning and managed to reach Gaza City, he said.
Repeated body searches in Gaza
The IDF surrounded Jabalia and launched a new ground operation there more than three weeks ago, cutting off most supplies and forcing people to leave amid heavy fighting. The IDF said it saw signs of Hamas rebuilding in the area, despite a year of heavy bombing and two previous ground operations that the Israeli military claimed were successful.
In recent weeks, the Israeli army has issued repeated evacuation orders for northern Gaza, including dropping leaflets over Jabalia warning residents to “evacuate immediately.” Several Palestinians previously told CNN who were shot at while trying to follow evacuation orders.
Although the Israeli army declined to comment on the situation captured in the photograph, it admitted that it has routinely detained and searched people as part of its combat operations in Gaza. He did not comment on the question of CNN about the elderly and injured, as well as the child seen in the photograph.
“Individuals suspected of involvement in terrorist activities are being detained and interrogated,” an IDF official told CNN in a statement. She said detainees are treated in accordance with international law, but also told CNN that “terrorist suspects are often required to hand over their clothing so they can be searched and to ensure they are not concealing explosive vests or other weapons.”
Due to security protocol, “clothes are not immediately returned to detainees,” the statement continued, adding that clothes are returned as soon as “it is possible to do so.”
The Geneva Conventions, a set of international laws that establish the rules of armed conflict, say that any detainee must be treated humanely. The rules explicitly prohibit acts that “outrage personal dignity, in particular humiliating and degrading treatment”.
The International Red Cross says intrusive searches, including strip searches of detainees, “should only be carried out if absolutely necessary” and not in front of other detainees.
The United Nations and other human rights organizations have criticized Israel’s military for detaining and stripping people during its military campaign in Gaza, accusing it of turning the practice into a weapon of war.
The UN Independent International Commission of Inquiry into the Occupied Palestinian Territory and Israel said last month it found that “forced nudity, intended to degrade and humiliate victims in front of soldiers and other detainees, was frequently used against male victims ”.
Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International also condemned Israel for what they said was a widespread practice.
In a report published in July on Israel’s treatment of detainees and prisoners, Amnesty International said forced public nudity for long periods violates the prohibition on torture and other ill-treatment and amounts to sexual violence.
Human Rights Watch also accused the Israeli government of allowing this type of practice. “Israeli authorities have looked the other way for months as members of their military publish dehumanizing, fully or semi-nude images and videos of Palestinians in their custody,” said Balkees Jarrah, acting Middle East director at Human Rights Watch.
This content was originally published in Israeli soldiers force Palestinians to take off their clothes in war zone on the CNN Brasil website.
Source: CNN Brasil
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