In an attempt to pressure Palestinian women during interrogation sessions, Israeli authorities often use sexual harassment as a tool to receive answers. In fact, according to Khitam Saafin, the leader of the Union of Palestinian Women’s Committees, this mistreatment is not random nor occasionally done by one or two officers. Rather, it is part of their policy and process to target the gendered Palestinian society and put it under pressure, knowing the high regard the subject of gender is held to.
To further illustrate, during her detention in Shikma Prison in Ashkelon, Dena Karmi, a 41-year-old Palestinian woman, was subject to continuous sexual harassment. Karmi explains that her husband was killed in 2010, leading her to live alone. Authorities used her living conditions as leverage as they accused her of indulging in illegitimate sexual relations.
“This was very humiliating and horrific particularly when the interrogator was behaving promiscuously trying to provoke me,” she disclosed. The Palestinian woman explained that the integrator accused her of performing sexual acts with other intelligence officers who had previously interrogated her. She recalls being threatened to become a victim of sexual abuse.
Another story similar to that of Karmi’s, explains how, while being transferred from one Israeli prison to another- between Ramallah and Jerusalem, a Palestinian woman prisoner was sitting across an Israeli inmate who raped her. Disregarding her pleas for help, Israeli authorities purposefully ignored her screams and appeals. "I was crying, praying, and asking God to help me, she said.
A report submitted to the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women highlights the harsh conditions being upheld in Israeli detention camps in which torture is heavily prevalent. Methods such as beating, deprivation of basic essential needs, exposure to extreme temperatures, and isolation are regularly used. Detained Palestinian women endure such measures amongst sexual violence in its multiple forms, including threats of rape, forceful and explicit body searches, as well as disrespectful and inappropriate groping and allegations.
Referring to the aforementioned, the abuse and mistreatment that Palestinian women endure are connected to the national Palestinian discourse that describes the woman’s body as a national one. This allows the female body to be weaponized by Israeli forces as it is a means for the latter to break down women, their families, their society, and in turn, their politics.
Interrogation clips of Ahed Tamimi had previously been leaked showing her getting sexually harassed by Israeli male soldiers. At the time, the 16-year-old Palestinian activist was questioned by two men who used verbal sexual pestering and physical intimidation during their investigation. While a female officer must be present during interrogations, this was not the case during Tamimi’s experience. However, the presence of a female officer does not usually create a difference for the detainee as female officers are usually equally violent compared to their male colleagues. Female officers aim to seek validation and recognition from their counterparts and superiors, which enables them to use extreme violent means against Palestinian prisoners.
It is also clear that Israeli forces do not modify their harmful behavior according to the prisoner’s age. Ahed Tamimi was a minor who was sexually violated by two officers just like other young Palestinian women. Ultimately, the consequences of such mistreatments are multiple and severe. In the short run, victims often report symptoms of acute stress, while in the long run, they may be diagnosed with depression, anxiety, and/or PTSD. To make the matter even more alarming, the previously mentioned disorders might eventually manifest into physical symptoms including muscle aches, high blood pressure, and migraines.
Unfortunately, this kind of treatment has been ongoing for multiple years regardless of attempts to prevent sexual harassment in Israeli prisons. In 2015, a complaint was filed by Addameer, prisoner support, and human rights group, against multiple policemen who had physically harassed a Palestinian female detainee. Subsequently, while it was “the only case where the police particularly responded,” the complaint reached no indictment. Multiple other complaints had been filed; however, authorities have mostly disregarded them.
According to Al Jazeera (2021), around 4,650 Palestinians are held in Israeli prisons. This number includes an estimate of 200 children and 40 women. The latter may be continuous subjects of sexual harassment by Israeli officers as it is a systematic method of racial and gender-based violence, that is now seen as a regular process during investigations.