Israel has been added to a United Nations blacklist on conflict-related sexual violence, according to reports by Reuters and Agence France-Presse on Friday, 29 May.
The blacklist is part of the UN Secretary-General’s annual report to the Security Council on conflict-related sexual violence, which tracks state and non-state actors accused of committing or facilitating systematic sexual violence during armed conflicts.
The decision was reportedly included in the UN Secretary-General’s annual report on conflict-related sexual violence, which documents allegations involving parties accused of systematic sexual violence in armed conflicts.
Israel’s ambassador to the United Nations, Danny Danon, said he had been informed of the decision during a phone call with UN Secretary-General António Guterres. In a post published on X, Danon criticised the move, saying that “equating the democratic State of Israel with Hamas terrorists is a new low.”
According to AFP, the report documents allegations involving Israeli military, security, and prison personnel against Palestinian detainees in Israel and the occupied Palestinian territories since 2023. The allegations reportedly include sexual violence, forced nudity, and abuse in detention facilities involving Palestinian men, women, and children.
The report also reportedly states that UN investigators faced restrictions on access to detention centres by Israeli authorities, limiting the scope of investigations.
Hamas was previously included in the same report over allegations tied to the 7 October 2023 attack on southern Israel, allegations the group has denied.
Following reports of Israel’s inclusion, Israel’s Foreign Ministry announced it would sever ties with Guterres’ office, describing the decision as “an attempt to create a fake symmetry between Israel and the real sexual atrocities committed by Hamas,” and accused the UN of “systematically” targeting Israel.
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