The United Nations has added Israeli and Russian security forces to its annual blacklist of entities credibly suspected of systematically engaging in sexual violence during conflicts. The decision, detailed in an upcoming UN report reviewed by AFP [Agence France- Presse], marks the first time Israeli forces have been included since the review’s inception over 15 years ago. The listing follows a warning issued last August by UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres regarding ongoing violations in occupied Palestinian territories and Ukraine.
The report focuses heavily on Israel, documenting persistent patterns of sexual violence against Palestinian detainees in Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territory throughout 2025. Despite being denied access to Israeli detention facilities, UN investigators verified multiple severe cases dating back to 2023. These violations, which affected 14 men, seven women, nine boys, and one girl in Gaza and the West Bank, were frequently used as a form of torture. Documented abuses include gang rape, rape with objects, forced nudity, and physical violence targeted at genitals. The UN explicitly identified perpetrators as members of the Israeli military, security forces, and prison services.
In response, Israel denounced the UN’s decision, calling it a shameful and absurd attempt to create a false equivalence with Hamas, which is already on the blacklist. Israel’s UN Ambassador, Danny Danon, announced a freeze in relations with Guterres’s office until his term ends on December 31, 2026, declaring that Israel is completely done with the Secretary-General.
The report also blacklisted Russian armed and security forces for the first time due to widespread sexual violence against prisoners of war and civilians in occupied Ukrainian territories. UN data cited 310 cases in Ukraine involving rape, genital mutilation, and electric shocks, primarily targeting men. While the report also noted 31 older cases involving Ukrainian forces, Ukraine was not blacklisted as it permitted UN investigations and updated its legislation. Overall, the UN deplored a sharp, brutal rise in global conflict-related sexual violence throughout 2025.
