Palestinian Women Face Sexual Harassment by Israeli Forces across West Bank: Reports
TEHRAN (Tasnim) - Israeli soldiers have been accused of increasingly harassing Palestinian women at checkpoints across the occupied West Bank, with recent incidents reported in the city of al-Khalil, according to testimonies cited by Haaretz.
In a shocking revelation, Palestinian women have reported escalating incidents of sexual harassment by Israeli forces at checkpoints in al-Khalil and other areas of the West Bank.
According to Haaretz, a young Palestinian woman described an incident on August 17 at the Tamar checkpoint in the Tel Rumeida neighborhood, where an Israeli soldier exposed himself to her after instructing her to open her bag.
"Out of shock, I left the checkpoint and didn't know what was happening, I felt as if someone had given me a slap," the woman was quoted as saying.
The woman further stated that she was threatened after complaining about the harassment.
"I was exhausted and depressed by it. Now it's easier for me, but when I want to go through the checkpoint I'm afraid the same thing will happen again," she said.
Following this incident, other women have come forward with similar accounts of degrading treatment by Israeli soldiers at checkpoints in recent weeks.
One young woman reported that an Israeli soldier took photos of her and her sister while they were crossing the same checkpoint.
Another woman said a soldier searched her phone while holding her hand.
"He grabbed my hand and told me to open the phone. I told him these were my private photos, why should I open them?" she said.
Several women have also reported regular verbal abuse at checkpoints, with local Palestinian residents noting that since the installation of metal detectors after October 7, women are sometimes required to remove their clothing.
Some women reported being instructed to remove their hijabs.
In June, a UN report concluded that Israeli authorities have systematically subjected Palestinian women and girls to sexual violence, including forced nudity, public stripping, sexualized torture, and harassment.
The report stated that these abuses are part of the operating procedures of Israeli forces.
“These acts were intended to humiliate and degrade the victims and the Palestinian community at large, by perpetuating gender stereotypes that create a sense of shame, subordination, emasculation, and inferiority,” the report stated.
Earlier this year, Reem al-Salem, the UN Special Rapporteur on Violence against Women and Girls, expressed deep concern about the increasing reports of rape by Israeli soldiers against Palestinian women at al-Shifa Hospital in Gaza.
Palestinian prisoner support organizations have called on international institutions to "take action," as a panel of UN experts described the reports of sexual assault against Palestinian women in Israeli detention as "credible."
