Overview

• Guterres’s annual report to the Security Council put Israel and Russia on notice that they could join Hamas on next year’s UN list of parties credibly suspected of conflict-related sexual violence.
• UN investigators cited credible reports of genital violence, forced prolonged nudity and abusive strip searches by Israeli armed and security forces against Palestinian detainees in multiple prisons and a military base.
• The report flagged credible evidence of genital electrocution, beatings, burns and forced stripping by Russian forces and affiliated groups against Ukrainian prisoners in official and unofficial detention facilities.
• Guterres said denial of access for UN monitors and limited information on accountability measures have hindered verification and urged both governments to conduct investigations, issue clear conduct codes and grant uninterrupted monitoring access.
• Israel’s UN ambassador Danny Danon dismissed the allegations as baseless and biased, and Russia’s UN mission did not engage with investigators or comment on the findings.