Israeli soldiers play with Gaza women’s underwear and post it online

By Estelle Shirbon and Pola Grzanka

(Reuters) – Israeli soldiers have published photos and videos of themselves playing with women’s underwear found in Palestinian homes, creating a jarring visual record of the war in Gazawhile looming famine intensifies worldwide scrutiny of Israel’s offensive.

In one video, an Israeli soldier sits in an armchair in a room in Gazasmiling, with a gun in one hand and hanging white satin underwear in the other, over the open mouth of a companion lying on a sofa.

In another post, another soldier sits on top of a tank holding a female mannequin dressed in a black bra and helmet and says: “I found a beautiful wife, a serious relationship in Gazaa great woman.”

The two videos recorded by Israeli soldiers are among dozens of publications in which troops in Gaza they are shown displaying lingerie, mannequins and, in some cases, both. The lingerie images were viewed tens of thousands of times — nearly half a million in one case — after being reposted by Younis Tirawi, who describes himself as a Palestinian reporter.

Asked about the images he reposted to his more than 100,000 followers on X between February 23 and March 1, Tirawi provided links to the original posts by Israel Defense Force (IDF) soldiers. Reuters then independently verified eight images posted on Instagram or YouTube.

“The publication of such images is humiliating for Palestinian women and for all women,” said Ravina Shamdasani, spokeswoman for the United Nations (UN) Human Rights Office.

Reuters sent details of the eight verified YouTube or Instagram posts to the IDF, requesting comment.

In response, a spokesperson sent a statement saying that the IDF investigates incidents that deviate from orders and the values ​​expected of IDF soldiers, as well as video reports uploaded to social media.

“In cases where suspicion of a criminal offense arises that justifies the opening of an investigation, an investigation is opened by the Military Police,” he said.

“It should be clarified that in some of the cases examined, it was concluded that the soldiers’ expression or behavior in the video was inappropriate, and this was handled accordingly,” the statement said.

The IDF declined to say whether it was referring to any of the images highlighted by Reuters, or whether any of the soldiers responsible were punished.

The Israeli soldiers Reuters was able to identify did not respond to requests for comment sent via their social media accounts.

The authenticated posts include a photo of a soldier holding a naked female mannequin from behind with his hands on her breasts and one of a soldier handling a semi-naked doll.

One photo shows a soldier posing with his gun, making a thumbs-up gesture, in front of a double bed filled with packages of women’s underwear.

YouTube said it removed a video flagged by Reuters for violating the platform’s harassment policies, which prohibit content that reveals someone’s personally identifiable information. Instagram did not comment.

Israel’s military campaign in Gaza was launched in response to an attack on Israel by the Palestinian Islamist group Hamas on October 7, in which the militants killed around 1,200 people and took 253 hostages, according to Israel.

The publications come at a time when Hamas and Israel are being accused of serious war crimes. A team of UN experts said this month in a report that there were reasonable grounds to believe that sexual violence, including rapes and gang rapes, occurred in several locations during the Hamas attack on October 7.

Experts also said there was convincing information that some Israeli hostages taken to Gaza had been subjected to sexual violence, which may still be ongoing.

Israel is accused of pushing Gaza for hunger. The UN team of experts also stated in their recent report that they received information from institutional and civil society sources and direct interviews in the West Bank about sexual violence against Palestinians by the IDF.

Both sides reject allegations of sexual violence.

Posts of women’s underwear and mannequins do not compare in severity to the alleged crimes against women reported since October 7th. Still, two legal experts said they potentially violated international law.

Ardi Imseis, assistant professor of law at Queen’s University in Canada, said the publications violated Article 27 of the Fourth Geneva Convention, which governs the treatment of civilians in times of war.

Article 27 says that civilians have the right to respect for their honor, family rights, manners and customs, and must be protected against insults and public curiosity, and that women must be especially protected against any attack on their honor.

In Israel, publications featuring women’s underwear in Gaza attracted little attention, said Oren Persico of Seventh Eye, a website that covers Israeli media. On the other hand, he said, publications showing Hamas weapons or flags that were allegedly found in the homes of Gaza are circulating widely.

(Additional reporting by Maria Paula Laguna, Maayan Lubell, Emily Rose, Maytaal Angel and Gabrielle Tetrault-Farber)

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