Israel stoking ‘ethnic cleansing’ fears in Gaza, West Bank: UN
‘Torture, threats, rape’: Palestinian journalists detail Israeli jail abuse
UNITED NATIONS: Increased Israeli attacks and the forced transfer of Palestinians have sparked concern over ethnic cleansing in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank, the UN human rights office, OHCHR, said in a report issued on Thursday.
The report covers the period from 1 November 2024 to 31 October 2025 and is based on monitoring conducted by OHCHR and information from governmental sources, other UN entities, and non-governmental organizations.
“Intensified attacks, the methodical destruction of entire neighbourhoods and the denial of humanitarian assistance appeared to aim at a permanent demographic shift in Gaza,” it said.
“This, together with forcible transfers, which appear to aim at a permanent displacement, raise concerns over ethnic cleansing in Gaza and the West Bank.”
The report details the continued killing and maiming of unprecedented numbers of civilians by Israeli forces in Gaza, the spread of famine in the enclave, and the destruction of the remaining civilian infrastructure such as hospitals, schools and homes.
This was “imposing on Palestinians conditions of life increasingly incompatible with their continued existence in Gaza as a group.”
Meanwhile, Palestinian journalists jailed by Israel have reported widespread abuse in custody, including routine beatings, starvation and sexual assault, according to testimony published by the International Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ).
In a February 19 report, the media rights group said it interviewed 59 Palestinian journalists imprisoned by Israel after the Hamas-led attacks of October 2023. All but one reported experiencing “torture, abuse or other forms of violence”, it said.
The alleged abuse meted out by Israeli authorities ranged from baton beatings and electroshocks to excruciating stress positions – including under sewage water – as well as sexual violence. Two journalists said they were raped.
Journalist Sami al-Sai said soldiers stripped him and penetrated him with a baton and other items in a small cell in Israel’s Megiddo prison, an ordeal he said left him in a “severe psychological state”.
“Descriptions of sexual violence appeared repeatedly in the testimonies, with journalists describing assaults as intended to humiliate, terrorise and permanently scar them”, said the CPJ report.
Other accounts detailed psychological abuse, including threats to kill family members, sleep deprivation through loud music and medical neglect, such as being denied treatment for severe bone fractures and eye injuries.
Journalist Amin Baraka said he was repeatedly threatened for his work with Al Jazeera.
“An Israeli soldier told me, word for word in Arabic, ‘Al Jazeera correspondent Wael al-Dahdouh defied us and remained in the Gaza Strip, so we killed his family. We will kill your family, too,’” Baraka told CPJ.
“In every prison they transferred me to, I was subjected to physical abuse. I still suffer from the blows to my stomach … and I need surgery,” he added.
CPJ said the reports of abuse from dozens of journalists expose a “clear pattern”.
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“These are not isolated incidents”, said CPJ Regional Director Sara Qudah. “They expose a deliberate strategy to intimidate and silence journalists, and destroy their ability to bear witness.”
‘There needs to be accountability’
Many of the jailed journalists were also denied basic legal protections, said CPJ. Monitoring Desk
