Were Gaza prisoners forced to strip to their underwear by Israel?

Several pictures and videos that have emerged online in recent days show dozens of Palestinian men being arrested, some stripped down to their underwear and forced to sit or kneel on the ground. 

Some people have pointed to the shocking video as evidence of Israel’s human rights violations and humiliating treatment of prisoners. 

But this video also raised questions about its authenticity. “It looks fake… Nobody is restrained and Israel blindfolds all prisoners,” one Twitter user commented.

The Cube decided to take a closer look.

Where did these arrests take place?

There have been multiple reports. An Israeli government spokesperson claimed it was taken in the Hamas stronghold of Jabaliya. 

Meanwhile, according to Palestinians, the images were filmed in the northern town of Beit Lahiya.

The Geolocation sleuths, Geoconfirmed also found the video was taken in the southern part of the town Beit Lahiya.

We found these images first appeared online on 7 December. However, it is difficult to confirm the circumstances in which these arrests took place, their exact date, or the person behind the video.

Who are some of the prisoners seen in the video?

The international NGO Euro-Mediterranean Human Rights Monitor indicated that it had recognised several civilians, including a school director and doctors.

They were taken from two schools, both of which are affiliated with the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA), the rights group said in a statement.

According to his employer, at least one journalist from The New Arab, a media outlet based in London, is among the prisoners seen in the video. 

Other members of the journalists’ family were also arrested according to the Committee to Protect Journalists.

The Committee to Protect Journalists reminded that the New Arab is one of the few media outlets still present in the north of the Gaza Strip.

In an interview with CNN, Hani Almadhoun, director of philanthropy for the US arm of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA USA) said he knew a dozen people pictured in circulating images, including his brother. He claimed his brother is a shopkeeper and is not affiliated with Hamas. 

What does Israel say?

During a press conference on Sunday, the spokesperson for Israel Defense Forces acknowledged that mass arrests have taken place but assured the detainees were “treated in accordance with international law”, justifying stripping them down to by saying they were searching for explosive devices. 

The Euro-Mediterranean Human Rights Monitor said the men were “arbitrarily arrested” after Israeli forces surrounded two shelters inside the schools in Beit Lahiya. 

Asked about the video, a spokesman for the Israeli government told the BBC the men detained were all of military age and had been “discovered in areas that civilians were supposed to have evacuated weeks ago”.

A senior Israeli official told the Times of Israel that the photos of Palestinian men being stripped to their underwear after their arrest by the IDF in Gaza might be “uncomfortable.”

Under international humanitarian law, all prisoners of war need to be treated humanely. 

The act of publishing these humiliating images could be a violation of the Geneva Convention, especially considering the presence of civilians.