War Crime: Israel, Russian armed forces accused of sexual violence; United Nations issues notice

United Nations Secretary -General Antonio Guterres kept notice to Israel and Russia, warning that they could be added to a list of “reliable suspicious” parties to commit sexual violence in the struggle areas next year. In its annual report to the United Nations Security Council, Guterres expressed serious concern over reliable reports of rape and Palestinians in jails by Israeli armed and security forces expressed serious concern over other forms of sexual violations at jails, a detention center and sexual violation at a military base. Unknown cases were involved in genital violence, prolonged nudity, and repeated derogatory bandage discoveries. Guterres said Israel’s refusal to give the United Nations monitor access difficult to fully assess the pattern and urged the government to end such acts, investigate reliable allegations and allow monitoring. In March, United Nations-backed human rights experts systematically accused Israel using sexual and gender-based violence. Israel’s United Nations Ambassador Danny Danon dismissed the claims as “baseless” and accused the United Nations of bias, saying that Hamas’s actions should be focused on. In July 2024, nine Israeli soldiers were detained on the alleged sexual attack of a Palestinian prisoner at the SDE Teemon facility. Guterres also expressed concern over the report of sexual violence by Russian forces and affiliated groups against Ukrainian prisoners of war in official and informal prevention sites. Documented cases included genital electrocution, beating, burn, forced stripping and prolonged nudity, used to extract and remove information.