Israel ought to absolutely examine allegations of sexual abuse towards Palestinian detainees by its troopers, State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller mentioned on Wednesday, calling for “zero tolerance” for perpetrators.
Asked a few video, aired by Israel’s Channel 12, that appeared to indicate troopers taking a detainee out of sight of surveillance cameras to hold out abuses and about broader allegations of abuses towards prisoners, Miller mentioned U.S. officers had reviewed the video.
“We have seen the video, and reports of sexual abuse of detainees are horrific. They ought to be investigated fully by the government of Israel, by the IDF,” Miller mentioned, referring to the Israel Defense Forces.
“There ought to be zero tolerance for sexual abuse, rape of any detainee, period. … If there are detainees who have been sexually assaulted or raped, the government of Israel, the IDF need to fully investigate those actions and hold anyone responsible accountable to the full extent of the law.”
The White House additionally referred to as the stories of rape, torture and abuse of Palestinian prisoners “deeply concerning.”
“It is essential that the rule of law and due process prevail,” mentioned White House spokesperson Karine Jean-Pierre.
A spokesperson for Israel‘s embassy in Washington didn’t instantly reply to a request for touch upon Wednesday.
But the Israeli army, which runs some detention amenities the place Palestinian prisoners have been held, mentioned in response to earlier allegations that it operated in response to the rule of legislation and any particular claims of abuse have been investigated.
The video showing to indicate an incident of abuse emerged amid an investigation by Israeli authorities into alleged abuse of Palestinian prisoners by troopers.
The investigation sparked protests by right-wing Israelis, who broke into two army amenities after army police detained 9 troopers over allegations of extreme abuse of a detainee captured in Gaza by military reservists on the Sde Teiman detention facility in southern Israel.
“It is appropriate that the IDF in this case has announced an investigation has arrested a number of people who are alleged to have been involved,” the State Department‘s Miller mentioned.
“I won’t speak to the outcome of that investigation, but it ought to proceed swiftly, and if they are determined to be in violation of criminal laws or violations of the IDF’s code of conduct, then ,of course, they ought to be held accountable.”
Israeli rights group B’Tselem mentioned in a report on Monday that Israel has performed a systematic coverage of prisoner abuse and torture for the reason that begin of the Gaza struggle in October, subjecting Palestinian detainees to acts starting from arbitrary violence to sexual abuse.
Source: www.anews.com.tr