Francesca Albanese, the UN Special Rapporteur on the rights situation in the occupied Palestinian territory, declared that torture has effectively become state policy in Israel. She asserted that Israel has been given a “licence to torture Palestinians,” as many governments have allegedly allowed such practices to persist without significant international pushback.
Presenting her report titled “Torture and genocide” to the UN Human Rights Council, Albanese stated that what once operated in the shadows is now practiced openly. She described it as a “regime of organised humiliation, pain and degradation,” sanctioned at the highest political levels within the Israeli government.
The report outlines that torture is not confined to detention cells but extends through cumulative impacts such as mass displacement, siege, denial of aid and food, unrestrained military and settler violence, and pervasive surveillance. This has turned the occupied Palestinian territory into a space of collective punishment, where genocidal violence serves as a tool of collective torture with long-term mental and physical consequences for the population.
Albanese, an outspoken critic of Israeli actions in the occupied West Bank and its military campaign in Gaza, has faced backlash from the Israeli and US regimes, with mounting calls for her removal. Israel’s mission to the UN slammed the report, labeling Albanese an “agent of chaos” and accusing her of antisemitism and supporting terrorist organizations—claims that reflect the ongoing geopolitical tensions.
According to statistics, Israeli attacks on Gaza since October 7, 2023, have killed at least 72,263 people and injured 171,944 others. In the occupied West Bank, Israeli authorities have arrested over 18,500 Palestinians, including at least 1,500 children as of February. Albanese called on UN member states to “prevent and punish” acts of torture and genocide, warning that if the international community continues to tolerate such actions against Palestinians, international law will be stripped of meaning.
Source: www.aljazeera.com