Announcements

CALL FOR PAPERS - SPECIAL SECTION ON ISRAEL & OCCUPIED PALESTINE

2024-11-07

The Palestinian people have endured a protracted process of occupation by Israel. This has resulted in a plethora of documented instances of human rights violations. One year after the Hamas attacks on 7th October 2023 in Israel and Israel's military campaign and associated grave human rights violations in Palestinian territory and other related Arab countries, it is an important duty to analyse emergent issues from a human rights perspective and for the Torture Journal to do so on matters within its scope.

To conduct an analysis in the context of an ongoing war and enormous suffering is undoubtedly complex. But epidemiology and health sciences have insights to contribute which go beyond calls for a cessation of violence and thus there is an ethical duty to try to do so.

From this standpoint, Torture Journal encourages the submission of academic papers that contribute to a more comprehensive and evidence-based understanding of torture, ill-treatment, and associated human rights violations in the current context, including legal, psychosocial and community impacts and peace-building through justice.

In pursuit of this, Torture Journal, as a space for reflection on torture, its impacts and models of prevention and rehabilitation, has constituted a broad set of editors, based on its Editorial Board and invited guests from different fields, to ensure a plurality of perspectives and an evidence-based approach.

Torture Journal encourages authors to submit papers on the Israeli-Palestinian situation, particularly those which are interdisciplinary.

We welcome papers on:

  1. The definition of torture, torturing or coercive environments, and epidemiological studies on its prevalence and characteristics in the framework of the conflict and the occupation.
  2. Particular victim groups, locations, specific vulnerabilities, concerning risks, impacts and needs, including, for instance, mental health patients, older adults or pregnant women.
  3. The situation for children growing up under an ongoing and armed conflict – consequences and possible remedies.
  4. Impacts and care of health workers amidst the conflict.
  5. Aspects related to the situation in places of detention or deprivation of liberty, official or clandestine, including both detainees, prisoners, hostages or any other form of deprivation of liberty.
  6. Sociological, psychosocial or anthropological work in connection with the field of torture and coercive or torturing environments in both Israel and Israeli occupied territories.
  7. Legal discussions in relation to applications before International Courts.
  8. Psychosocial and community impacts and interventions within the population.
  9. Forensic assessment of cases based on the Istanbul Protocol.
  10. Effective rehabilitation practices for civil society amidst the conflict.
  11. Transitional justice, peace-building and justice interventions involving torture survivors.

Submission guidelines

Deadline for submissions: 30th April 2025

For more information. If potential authors doubt the suitability of their contributions, they can send an outline of the paper to the Editor-in-Chief for additional guidance.

- Pau Pérez-Sales, Editor-in-Chief (pauperez@runbox.com)
- Berta Soley, Editorial Assistant (bso@irct.org)

Submission guidelines and links

Special Section Editors: Malcolm Evans (UK), Jens Simon Modvig (Denmark), Daniel Weishut (Israel), Tania Herbert (Australia), John Schiemann (US), Mahmud Sehwail (Palestine), Nora Sveaass (Norway)

Read more about CALL FOR PAPERS - SPECIAL SECTION ON ISRAEL & OCCUPIED PALESTINE

Current Issue

Vol. 34 No. 3 (2024): Torture Journal: Journal on Rehabilitation of Torture Victims and Prevention of Torture

The issue opens with an editorial by Pau Perez-Sales and Sara Lopez-Martin, which examines the denial of abortion rights as a form of ill-treatment or torture. Drawing on international human rights jurisprudence, the authors outline how restrictive abortion laws can amount to cruel, inhuman, or degrading treatment, with severe physical and psychological consequences. The piece argues for the decriminalization of abortion and highlights the role of health professionals and legal practitioners in advocating for reproductive rights as part of broader anti-torture efforts.

Catarina Nahlén Bose and Ronak Tamdjidi contribute a systematic review on children who survive torture, focusing on the screening, documentation, and treatment of torture injuries in minors. This paper addresses a gap in existing literature, advocating for tailored approaches to ensure the psychological and physical well-being of child survivors. The authors emphasize the importance of child-specific protocols in torture rehabilitation centres, calling for stronger integration of pediatric care in torture assessment frameworks.

Nudd et al. present a research paper examining the health and legal implications of prison overcrowding. Their analysis highlights the link between overcrowded facilities and increased risks of ill-treatment, proposing legal and public health interventions to mitigate harm. The paper underscores the urgent need for systemic reforms to address prison conditions, recognizing the structural violence embedded within penal systems globally.

In another research contribution, Tinghög et al. explore the acceptability and preliminary effects of intensive trauma-focused PTSD treatment for refugees. Through a pilot study, the authors assess the outcomes of short-term interventions aimed at alleviating trauma symptoms. Early results suggest that such treatments can be effective in improving psychological well-being, though the study notes the importance of long-term follow-up to fully evaluate the impact of these interventions.

Anne Margrethe Sønneland contributes with an article which delves into the experiences of survivors rebuilding their lives after torture. Through narrative reconstruction, Sønneland explores the long-term social and emotional consequences of torture, shedding light on the resilience of survivors and the barriers they face in reclaiming their futures.

Berta Soley and Hugo Marboeuf discuss the implementation of the IRCT Global Standards on Rehabilitation of Torture Survivors through a piece that traces the path from the adoption of these standards to their practical application in rehabilitation centres worldwide, highlighting key lessons learned and strategies for strengthening the quality of care provided to survivors.

In the news section, Andrea Mølgaard reports on a historic legal victory holding a U.S. contractor accountable for acts of torture at Abu Ghraib prison. The article provides insight into the significance of this verdict for international justice and emphasizes the role of litigation in advancing accountability for torture.

The issue also features a letter to the editor from Anna Fierz, addressing the concerning rise in ocular injuries caused by less-lethal weapons in Switzerland. Fierz draws attention to the disproportionate use of such weapons in protest contexts, advocating for regulatory measures to safeguard civilians from unnecessary harm.

Finally, the issue closes with a call for papers on human rights violations in Israel and Occupied Palestine, encouraging submissions that reflect on the intersection of torture, conflict, and legal accountability in the region.

Published: 2024-12-27

Full Issue

Editorial

Review articles

Research and Scientific articles

News

Letter to the Editor

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PLEASE NOTE: A new website for the Torture Journal is under construction.

The Torture Journal is an international scientific journal that provides an interdisciplinary forum for the exchange of original research and systematic reviews by professionals concerned with the biomedical, psychological and social interface of torture and the rehabilitation of its survivors.