Torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment: hostage-taking as torture – Report of the Special Rapporteur on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment, Alice Jill Edwards (A/HRC/58/55)

06 February 2025

Following is the excerpt from the report on the situation in Israel and the State of Palestine:

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7. In December, the Special Rapporteur traveled to Israel and Palestine (Ramallah) to meet authorities, Israeli former hostages and families of hostages, Palestinian victims of torture, academia and civil society organizations. Among other activities, she conducted site visits to locations that were attacked on 7 October 2023.

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(l) The keynote address to launch the Hebrew version of the Manual on the Effective Investigation and Documentation of Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (Istanbul Protocol) at an event organized by the Public Committee Against Torture in Israel (December);

(m) Closing remarks at an academic conference on the theme “From hopelessness to hopefulness: strengthening children’s rights and well-being during and after crisis” at the Hebrew University in Jerusalem, Israel (December);

(n) Exchanges at a round table with academics, experts and government authorities on how the legal framework prohibiting sexual torture should be used to investigate and prosecute such crimes, hosted by the Dinah Project and Bar-Ilan University, Israel (December).

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27. Hamas and other Palestinian armed groups, as part of their lethal attack of 7 October 2023, abducted 251 people inside Israel, taking them to the Gaza Strip. At the time of writing, 100 hostages, including two infant children, women and older persons, remained unaccounted for. The Special Rapporteur is on record repeatedly calling for their immediate and unconditional release. She has also called for accountability for all international crimes committed by Hamas and other armed groups and Israel in the context of the war in Gaza. The Independent International Commission of Inquiry on the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem, and Israel has reported that abductions by Hamas are war crimes. The Commission noted that, in most cases, there have also been outrages upon personal dignity and inhumane treatment, as well as sexual and gender-based violence.The Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights found that the holding of hostages under the current conditions in Gaza, including underground for months, might amount to the war crime of torture or other ill-treatment. The Special Representative of the Secretary-General on Sexual Violence in Conflict documented “clear and convincing information”, based on first-hand accounts of released hostages, of rape and sexualized torture against female hostages.

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39. The International Court of Justice in its provisional orders in South Africa v. Israel ordered that: “The Court deems it necessary to emphasize that all parties to the conflict in the Gaza Strip are bound by international humanitarian law. It is gravely concerned about the fate of the hostages abducted during the attack in Israel on 7 October 2023 and held since then by Hamas and other armed groups, and calls for their immediate and unconditional release.”

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53. The experience of being abducted – through assault or arrest – can be terrifying. It is often completely unexpected and is always disorienting. Hostage-takers have not spared children, pregnant women, persons with serious medical conditions or disabilities, or the elderly. A released Israeli female hostage, who was seized on 7 October 2023, described to the Special Rapporteur that within minutes in Gaza she was surrounded by people yelling and cheering, as she was beaten with sticks.

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78. Legal clarification of the status of family members and dependants as “victims” entitled to access support is elementary.[1] Peer support networks to connect people with others who have experienced similar ordeals may reduce isolation and provide a sense of community and mutual support.[2] In Israel, the Hostages and Missing Families Forum exemplifies the mobilization of secondary victims, who have become full-time advocates on the international stage.[3]

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85. The Hostage, Missing Persons and Returnees Administration of Israel provides comprehensive and tailored support to returned hostages and their families that addresses medical, psychological, social and legal needs. Various laws have been enacted to ensure these services and financial support. Family members of unreleased hostages are provided with monthly stipends. Returned hostages are entitled to stipends for life, disability allowances, medical treatments and wage compensation while in captivity. Upon release, hostages undergo a medical evaluation, with protocols that emphasize sensitivity, agency and the documentation of physical findings that may indicate war crimes. Specialized care is provided for children and young women, with protocols tailored to their specific needs and preferences. Family members are entitled to financial grants.