UK demands full probe after Israeli troops 'beat and humiliated' medics in Gaza

12 March 2024 , 18:30

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Footage shared by the BBC shows people detained by Israeli troops after Nasser Hospital was raided

The Foreign Office has demanded a full investigation into claims Israeli troops beat and humiliated Palestinian medical workers in Gaza.

The BBC said staff at Nasser Hospital, in Khan Younis were blindfolded, stripped and beaten by members of the Israeli Defence Force. One distraught doctor claimed he was detained, had dogs set upon him and was violently assaulted by a soldier. Another said the medics were hit by Israeli troops every time they moved, treatment lawyers have branded “cruel and inhumane”. In at least three matching accounts, alleged victims claimed they were soaked with cold water and forced into stress positions.

Minister Andrew Mitchell, who acts as a deputy for Foreign Secretary Lord David Cameron, told MPs: “We have seen these reports. I think that a full explanation and investigation is required and that is what the British Government is pressing for.”

Dr Ahmed Abu Sabha, who works at Nasser Hospital, claimed he was held for a week, had muzzled dogs set on him and had his hand broken by a soldier. The 26-year-old volunteer said he was seized on February 15 and made to stand for hours or forced to lie on his stomach for prolonged periods. He added there was a maternity building, Mubarak, where interrogations and beatings happened and it had become “more like a place of torture”.

Nasser Hospital in the southern Gaza Strip city of Khan Younis

Dr Abu Sabha added: “They put me in a chair and it was like a gallows. I heard sounds of ropes so I thought I was going to be executed.” The doctor said detainees were punished for even the slightest infractions, adding: “At one point, the blindfold moved down a bit and my hands were handcuffed from behind and I could not fix it. They took me out for punishment… I was standing with my hands raised above my head and my face looking down for three hours. Then, [a soldier] asked me to come to him. When I did, he kept hitting my hand until it was broken.”

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The BBC supplied details of their allegations to the Israel Defence Force. They did not respond directly to questions about these accounts, or deny specific claims of mistreatment. The IDF has claimed Israeli hostages taken by Hamas on October 7 had been held at the Nasser Hospital.

Elsewhere, Mr Mitchell was pressed by MPS to restore funding to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees, the main UN aid agency in Gaza. The UK is among a group of countries that has halted funding to the agency amid allegations from Israel that some UNRWA staff members have colluded with Hamas. Mr Mitchell indicated the UK wants to see illegal settlers in Palestinian territories “arrested, tried and punished”.

Chris Hughes