New report of the UN Special Rapporteur warns of Israel's Systematic Torture of Palestinians
The new report of Francesca Albanese, Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Palestinian territories occupied since 1967, published on 23 March 2026 and presented to the UN Human Rights Council, warns that Israel’s systematic torture of Palestinians, long shielded by decades of impunity and political cover, has become a defining instrument of ongoing genocide in the occupied Palestinian territory.
The report warns that since October 2023, more than 18,500 Palestinians have been detained, many without charge or trial, across the occupied Palestinian territory, including at least 1,500 children. Detainees have been abused and tortured in unfathomable ways and nearly 100 detainees have died in custody. Moreover, the report finds that torture extends beyond prison walls. Through relentless bombardment, forced displacement, starvation and the destruction of homes, hospitals and infrastructure, Israel has created what the report calls a “torturous environment” across the entire occupied Palestinian territory.
The report concludes that the systematic use of torture, combined with the wider campaign of destruction inflicted on the Palestinian people, forms an integral component of the ongoing genocide, inflicting severe bodily and mental harm on Palestinians as a group. Albanese urges Israel to immediately cease all acts of torture, grant access to international investigators and humanitarian organizations, and ensure accountability for those responsible.
Furthemore, member states must meet their legal obligations to prevent and punish genocide, torture and other serious violations of international law, including by investigating and issuing arrest warrants for those responsible. International law is unequivocal in the fact that torture is absolutely prohibited and its increasing use as part of Israel’s genocide against the Palestinian people makes this violation all the more grave. If the international community continues to tolerate such acts when inflicted on Palestinians, then the law itself will be stripped of meaning.