The Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights in the Occupied Palestinian Territory reported on Thursday that, for the third consecutive day, Palestinian returnees to Gaza via the recently reopened Rafah crossing continue to suffer a consistent pattern of ill-treatment, violations, and humiliation by Israeli military forces.
In a post on the “X” platform, monitored by the Yemeni News Agency (Saba), the office added that returning Palestinians informed it that after crossing the border, they were taken by Palestinian gunmen, allegedly supported by the Israeli army, to an Israeli military checkpoint. Consistent accounts indicate that some of these gunmen bound the returnees’ hands, blindfolded them, searched them, threatened , intimidated them, stole their personal belongings and money.
The office continued, stating that upon arrival at the Israeli checkpoint, the returnees described a pattern of violence, humiliating interrogations, and degrading physical searches, and in some cases, they were blindfolded and handcuffed. They also reported that soldiers prevented them from accessing medical care when needed and from using toilets, leading to severe humiliation, including forcing them to urinate in public.
The office said a number of returnees were asked if they would accept money to return to Egypt with their families and never come back. Some stated they were offered money to become informants for the Israeli army.
It affirmed that these combined accounts point to a pattern of behavior that violates Palestinians’ rights to personal security, dignity, and freedom from torture, ill-treatment, and other forms of cruel, inhuman, or degrading treatment.
It explained that the reported pattern of behavior towards returnees raises serious concerns about coercion, deterring Palestinians from exercising their right to return to the areas they were forced to leave, which further contributes to the ethnic cleansing of Gaza.
The office quoted Ajith Sunghay, Head of the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, as saying: “The international community has a responsibility to ensure all measures taken regarding Gaza are in full compliance with international law and fully respect the human rights of Palestinians. After two years of comprehensive destruction, the safe and dignified return of Palestinians to their families and what remains of their houses is their minimum right.”
