Israeli militants waged a violent riot on Monday, breaking into multiple facilities to support nine Israeli soldiers who were slated to appear in a military court for a hearing over allegations that they had raped a Palestinian man who they were imprisoning at a notorious Israeli torture camp.
The groups of protesters pushed up against soldiers as they broke into the Sde Teiman camp, where many Palestinians abducted from Gaza have been tortured in recent months, and a military court in a base where the accused soldiers were being held. The Associated Press reported that “several hundred” protesters broke into Sde Teiman, with some wielding megaphones and calling for the reservists to be released.
Videos from the scene at Sde Teiman showed protesters breaking open gates to storm into the camp, many brandishing Israeli flags. Some of the protesters were reportedly armed, and groups at both Sde Teiman and the military court clashed with soldiers and chanted “shame” as they rioted.
The detained soldiers have reportedly been charged with the sexual abuse of a Palestinian man who suffered injuries to his anus so severe that he was unable to walk, Axios reported, citing Israeli media. Israeli media have reported that the man was hospitalized as a result of the alleged abuse.
Members of the Israeli government have also defended the soldiers, claiming it is wrong for the government to charge the reservists. Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich condemned the arrests, calling the soldiers accused of rape “heroic warriors” who should be released.
In fact, some lawmakers in the most extremist pockets of Israel’s government were reportedly at the protest at the military court, which dispersed after the group found out that the arrested reservist soldiers were no longer being held there.
The clashes with police, who are under the administration of Israeli minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, one of the most outspoken extremists in Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government, were relatively tame, Axios reported. Though videos showed the protesters clearly breaking into the facilities, no arrests were made.
In the Israeli Knesset on Monday, meanwhile, lawmakers debated whether or not sexual abuse was a legitimate tactic for Israeli soldiers. (International law considers sexual violence by soldiers to be a war crime.) One lawmaker in Netanyahu’s party, Hanoch Milwidsky, claimed that any treatment of a Hamas militant is legitimate. Reports have not identified the victim, though many reports have found that Israeli forces consider any Palestinian man or boy to be a member of Hamas.
“If he is Nukhba, everything is legitimate to do. Everything,” Milwidsky said.
The charges line up with numerous findings about the abominable conditions that Israeli forces are perpetuating at Sde Teiman and other prison camps; human rights advocates and Palestinians who have survived the camp have likened Sde Teiman to Guantánamo for the extreme abuses faced by Palestinians there — who have been abducted by Israeli forces and imprisoned without charges.
At least 35 Palestinians have died in Sde Teiman as a result of abuses that appear to be the official policy of those running the camp. Prisoners and investigations have reported that Israeli soldiers there deprive Palestinians of necessary medical care while also beating and torturing them, siccing dogs on them, and depriving them of food. Human rights groups have said that every prisoner comes out having shed tens of pounds due to the deprivation.
Sexual violence is particularly prevalent in these Israeli torture camps, reports have found. The UN recently reported that many people, men and women, have said that they were sexually abused by the Israeli soldiers who were imprisoning them. These reports include molestation, rape, and physical abuse to sexual parts — including beating of and putting pepper on genitals, some survivors said. One survivor reported Israeli soldiers making him sit on an electrical probe, causing burns to his anus.
Human Rights Watch also recently found that Israeli soldiers imprison children in their camps, again without charges. In some cases, Israeli soldiers strip the children — like other Palestinians held prisoner — and take pictures of them naked or near-naked, then post them on social media to mock them.
Help us Prepare for Trump’s Day One
Trump is busy getting ready for Day One of his presidency – but so is Truthout.
Trump has made it no secret that he is planning a demolition-style attack on both specific communities and democracy as a whole, beginning on his first day in office. With over 25 executive orders and directives queued up for January 20, he’s promised to “launch the largest deportation program in American history,” roll back anti-discrimination protections for transgender students, and implement a “drill, drill, drill” approach to ramp up oil and gas extraction.
Organizations like Truthout are also being threatened by legislation like HR 9495, the “nonprofit killer bill” that would allow the Treasury Secretary to declare any nonprofit a “terrorist-supporting organization” and strip its tax-exempt status without due process. Progressive media like Truthout that has courageously focused on reporting on Israel’s genocide in Gaza are in the bill’s crosshairs.
As journalists, we have a responsibility to look at hard realities and communicate them to you. We hope that you, like us, can use this information to prepare for what’s to come.
And if you feel uncertain about what to do in the face of a second Trump administration, we invite you to be an indispensable part of Truthout’s preparations.
In addition to covering the widespread onslaught of draconian policy, we’re shoring up our resources for what might come next for progressive media: bad-faith lawsuits from far-right ghouls, legislation that seeks to strip us of our ability to receive tax-deductible donations, and further throttling of our reach on social media platforms owned by Trump’s sycophants.
We’re preparing right now for Trump’s Day One: building a brave coalition of movement media; reaching out to the activists, academics, and thinkers we trust to shine a light on the inner workings of authoritarianism; and planning to use journalism as a tool to equip movements to protect the people, lands, and principles most vulnerable to Trump’s destruction.
We urgently need your help to prepare. As you know, our December fundraiser is our most important of the year and will determine the scale of work we’ll be able to do in 2025. We’ve set two goals: to raise $150,000 in one-time donations and to add 1,500 new monthly donors by midnight on December 31.
Today, we’re asking all of our readers to start a monthly donation or make a one-time donation – as a commitment to stand with us on day one of Trump’s presidency, and every day after that, as we produce journalism that combats authoritarianism, censorship, injustice, and misinformation. You’re an essential part of our future – please join the movement by making a tax-deductible donation today.
If you have the means to make a substantial gift, please dig deep during this critical time!
With gratitude and resolve,
Maya, Negin, Saima, and Ziggy