JAKARTA - Israel is launching an investigation into the deaths of Palestinians arrested and detained during the Gaza war, as well as military-run detention camps, where human rights groups allege abuse of inmates, the chief military prosecutor said on Monday.
Citing reports from former inmates and a doctor from the Sde Teiman base, the Doctors for Human Rights group said last month that detainees had been subjected to severe violence that caused broken bones, internal bleeding and even death.
Palestinians also accused the Israeli army of carrying out illegal killings during the Gaza war which has lasted almost eight months.
"To date, 70 military police investigations have been opened into incidents that raise suspicions of criminal activity," said chief military prosecutor Major General Yifat Tomer Yerushalmi, as reported by Reuters, May 27.
"This investigation also addresses allegations that have emerged regarding conditions of detention at the Sde Teiman detention center and the deaths of detainees in IDF custody. We take these allegations very seriously and are taking action to investigate them," he stressed.
Quoting The Times of Israel, the Sde Teiman military base is located in the Negev Desert.
Earlier this month, Israeli human rights groups petitioned the High Court to close the detention center.
Last month, about 150 Palestinians who were arrested in an Israeli military operation in the Gaza Strip and released on Monday said they had been subjected to torture and ill-treatment during their detention, Palestinian officials said.
Border officials said the detainees, including two members of the Palestinian Red Crescent Society (PRCS) who had been held for 50 days, were released through the Israeli-controlled Kerem Shalom crossing in southern Gaza.
Several people were hospitalized, complaining of abuse and ill-treatment inside Israeli prisons, they said. Many of those released said they had been asked whether they had ties to the Hamas militant group, which controls Gaza. However, the Israeli military denied these accusations.
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In December, the UN Office of Human Rights (OHCHR) said it had received numerous reports of mass detentions, ill-treatment and enforced disappearances of Palestinians in northern Gaza by the Israeli military.
Separately, the Israeli military said in a statement that it acted in accordance with Israeli and international law. Those arrested have access to food, water, medicine and adequate clothing.
"The IDF operates to restore security to Israeli citizens, bring hostages home, and to achieve war objectives while operating in accordance with international law," the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said, adding specific complaints about inappropriate behavior would be forwarded to relevant authorities to review.
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