Gaza: The Palestinian human rights organization Al Mezan said on Saturday that the International Day of the Victims of Enforced Disappearances comes as Israel continues to commit some of the most severe crimes and violations against Palestinian civilians during a genocidal war, with enforced disappearances among the most brutal.
According to Jordan News Agency, Al Mezan stated that Israeli forces have conducted widespread enforced disappearances since October 2023 through mass arbitrary and degrading arrests affecting thousands of Palestinians. The organization noted that Israel refuses to acknowledge the fate of hundreds of detainees or provide information on their place of detention and conditions.
The group emphasized that enforced disappearance is an ongoing crime that strips victims of their humanity while worsening their psychological, health, and social suffering. It leaves families in anguish as they remain unaware of their loved ones' fates or whether they are alive.
Furthermore, Al Mezan reported that Israel denies the International Committee of the Red Cross access to visit detainees in Israeli prisons, restricts human rights organizations from visiting them or determining their fate, and refuses to acknowledge or disclose their detention. This, the group argues, is in violation of the 1998 Rome Statute establishing the International Criminal Court.
Al Mezan has called for the launch of an international campaign to highlight the issue of missing persons, ensure the disclosure of their fate, and guarantee them protections set out in international law. It urged the international community to assume its legal and moral responsibilities toward residents of the occupied Palestinian territories.
The organization also called for urgent action to halt the genocide in Gaza, address the issue of the missing, ensure accountability for perpetrators of enforced disappearance, provide justice and compensation for victims, and compel Israel to abide by international law and the rules established by international conventions.