Horrific testimonies were revealed by 17-year-old Ahmed Al-Helou, detailing how he and 15 other Palestinian children were subjected to severe sexual abuses, including rape and harassment, by Israeli female soldiers. Sources reported that these crimes occurred in one of the American aid centers and occupation camps near the city of Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip, following their arrest last June.
Al-Helou recounted the details of their detention by 10 Israeli female soldiers, where the children were forced to strip completely and were subjected to harsh physical harassment, culminating in rape at gunpoint. The boy explained that these practices took place in an environment of continuous psychological and physical torture within closed detention centers lacking the lowest standards of international oversight.
For her part, Wafaa Al-Helou, Ahmed's mother, expressed her shock and deep sorrow over what her son endured during his detention, noting that his psychological state had severely deteriorated. She confirmed that Ahmed is currently suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder and requires intensive specialized psychological care to overcome the catastrophic effects of what he was subjected to in the occupation camps.
These testimonies come in the context of increasing human rights reports speaking of systematic and organized violations within Israeli prisons and camps, particularly the 'Sde Teiman' detention center in the Negev desert. Human rights and international circles describe this detention center as 'Israel's Guantanamo' due to the practices it witnesses, aimed at the deliberate psychological and physical humiliation of Palestinian detainees.
Last November, the Palestinian Human Rights Monitor issued a report based on the testimonies of over 100 released detainees, who documented repeated rapes and terrorization by police dogs. The report also included details about the deliberate deprivation of food and clean water, and continuous beatings by prison guards away from the eyes of the International Committee of the Red Cross.
These incidents indicate a complete absence of oversight over Israeli detention centers, which have turned into hotbeds of war crimes and inhumane violations against civilians and children. Human rights advocates demand an urgent international investigation into these testimonies to ensure accountability for those responsible for these crimes, which violate all international conventions and laws related to the protection of prisoners and children.
We were forced to strip, then subjected to harassment and rape at gunpoint by 10 Israeli female soldiers inside a camp in Rafah.
שתף את דעתך
Shocking Testimonies from Palestinian Children Raped and Tortured by Israeli Female Soldiers in Rafah