Sexual Humiliation and Abuse of Palestinian Detainees: The Role of Female Soldiers in Documented and Alleged Case

The Israeli-Palestinian conflict has produced decades of mutual accusations of war crimes and human-rights violations. Among the most disturbing patterns that have emerged in recent years are reports of systematic humiliation, including sexualized degradation, inflicted on Palestinian detainees—particularly minors—by Israeli military and prison personnel. While the majority of documented perpetrators are male, a smaller but deeply troubling subset of cases involves female soldiers and guards.

Verified Patterns of Abuse

Multiple reputable sources have confirmed that sexual humiliation has been used as a deliberate tool against Palestinian detainees:

• In its June 2024 report, the UN Independent International Commission of Inquiry on the Occupied Palestinian Territory stated that Palestinian detainees, including children, were subjected to “sexual and gender-based violence” amounting to war crimes and crimes against humanity. The Commission documented cases of forced nudity, invasive strip searches conducted in a degrading manner, and threats of rape.
• Israeli human-rights organization B’Tselem has collected testimonies describing female soldiers and prison guards participating in or overseeing the forced stripping of detainees, photographing them while naked or in underwear, and mocking them.
• Breaking the Silence, an organization of Israeli veterans, has published testimonies from former soldiers acknowledging that photographing humiliated detainees (sometimes in compromising positions) became a form of “trophy” culture within certain units.

Specific Incidents Involving Female Soldiers

Several incidents widely circulated on social media and in Palestinian media outlets have drawn particular outrage because they allegedly involve female IDF soldiers:

1. The “dancing boys” video (December 2023)
   A short clip showed two blindfolded Palestinian teenagers in underwear being ordered to move or dance while a female soldier filmed them on her phone and laughed. The soldier’s face was partially visible. Palestinian sources identified the boys as having been detained in northern Gaza. The IDF stated it was investigating the footage but has not released public findings.
2. The “gun-sign selfie” photograph (early 2024)
   A widely shared image showed a blindfolded and handcuffed Palestinian youth in underwear flanked by two smiling female soldiers. One soldier made a finger-gun gesture above the detainee’s head while pouting for the camera. The photograph was reportedly posted briefly to a private Instagram story before being deleted.
3. Testimonies of minors transferred to Israeli detention facilities
   In interviews conducted by Defense for Children International–Palestine and by lawyers, several teenage boys detained from Gaza after October 2023 described being stripped completely naked in the presence of female soldiers or guards at facilities such as Sde Teiman and Ofer prison. They alleged mocking comments, photography, and in some cases physical contact of a sexual nature. One 17-year-old told Haaretz (through his lawyer) that the experience “made me want to die.”

While some of these claims remain under investigation and lack full independent verification, the broader pattern of sexualized humiliation has been corroborated by multiple international and Israeli organizations.

Female Perpetrators and the Psychology of Abuse

The involvement of women in such acts challenges common assumptions that sexual violence in conflict is exclusively male-on-female or male-on-male. Criminological research on female sex offenders—though mostly conducted in peacetime contexts—shows that women can exhibit the same sadistic and power-driven behaviors when placed in positions of total authority over vulnerable individuals. In militarized settings, the combination of group dynamics, dehumanization of the “enemy,” and impunity can amplify these tendencies.

Official Responses and Accountability

To date, very few soldiers—male or female—have faced serious prosecution for abuses against Palestinian detainees. Military advocates argue that investigations are ongoing; critics point out that convictions are exceptionally rare even when evidence exists. The Israeli military has suspended a small number of reservists from the Sde Teiman facility after videos of severe abuse surfaced in 2024, but no female soldiers have been publicly charged in the specific cases mentioned above.

Conclusion

The participation of female Israeli soldiers in the humiliation and alleged sexual abuse of Palestinian detainees, especially minors, is not the dominant pattern of abuse, but neither is it an isolated anomaly. Credible reports and testimonies indicate it forms part of a broader culture of impunity in certain detention settings. Addressing these violations requires transparent investigations, prosecution where evidence exists, and an end to practices that deliberately degrade and dehumanize detainees—regardless of the gender of the perpetrator.

Sources (selected):

• UN Independent International Commission of Inquiry (June 2024)
• B’Tselem reports on detention conditions (2023–2025)
• Defense for Children International–Palestine case files
• Haaretz, +972 Magazine, and The Guardian reporting on verified incidents