Widespread torture of Palestinian children used as human shields by the Israeli military

Abstract

Background: Israel’s occupation, apartheid and blockade of the Gaza Strip have always exposed Palestinian children to traumatic experiences. Their trauma has been exacerbated since 7 October 2023 through different practices by the Israeli military, including the well-established and institutionalised use of Palestinians as human shields.

Methods: The article provides details on four recent incidents throughout the Occupied West Bank, where Israeli soldiers have deliberately targeted and forced Palestinian children into being human shields. Drawing also from testimonies collected by other organisations, it explains how each incident affected these children, both physically and mentally.

Results: Children reported significant long-term trauma they sustained after being used as human shields, sometimes for several hours, as well as the pain they felt while being beaten repeatedly by Israeli soldiers.

Discussion: The legal analysis demonstrates how such acts qualify as torture. It further examines how Israel’s indiscriminate attacks targeting Palestinian civilians who Israel claims are shielding military objectives give rise to terror and may amount to inhumane treatment. It finally and briefly expands the scope of analysis to discuss how Israel’s acts in using Palestinian civilians as human shields fit into the ongoing genocide against the Palestinian people.