Palestinian groups demand halt to Israeli ‘crimes’ after torture videos surface

RAMALLAH, Palestine

Palestinian groups on Wednesday called for halting Israeli “crimes” against prisoners after videos emerged of soldiers torturing detainees in the West Bank.

Videos surfaced on social media showing Israeli soldiers harassing, abusing, and torturing Palestinian detainees in the occupied territory.

“We received shocking scenes of soldiers torturing a group of defenseless civilians in conditions that violate human dignity, after stripping them of their clothes,” a group of Prisoner Affairs Associations said in a joint statement.

“We call on the free people of the world who still believe in the right of the Palestinians to struggle for their freedom to play their role in halting these crimes,” they added.

According to the statement, the Israeli practices include “direct threats of shooting, severe beating, field investigations, threats of death and rape, the use of police dogs, and the use of citizens as human shields."

“The occupation (force) is openly committing these crimes amid support of international powers, without the slightest regard for the voices of free people in the world.”

Signatories of the joint statement included the Commission of Detainees' Affairs and the Palestinian Prisoner’s Society.

Tension has been running high across the West Bank amid a massive Israeli military offensive on the blockaded Gaza Strip.

At least 130 Palestinians have been killed and 1,740 others detained by the Israeli army since Oct. 7, according to Palestinian figures.

The Israeli army has expanded its air and ground attacks on the Gaza Strip, which has been under relentless airstrikes since a cross-border attack by Hamas on Oct. 7.

More than 10,300 people have since been killed in the conflict, including at least 8,796 Palestinians and more than 1,538 Israelis.

Besides the large number of casualties and displacement, basic supplies are running low for the 2.3 million residents in Gaza due to the Israeli siege.