Palestinian Prisoner Breaks Silence on Sexual Torture in Israeli Detention
Sami al-Saei has defied intense social stigma and Israeli warnings to publicly describe a brutal sexual assault he endured while detained in an Israeli prison, posting a detailed video on TikTok about his ordeal. The 47-year-old father of six said he felt a moral responsibility to speak out about what happened to him and other prisoners, despite the personal consequences he now faces.
Graphic Account of Sustained Sexual Violence
Al-Saei described hearing Israeli prison guards laughing during an assault that lasted more than twenty minutes, which occurred shortly after his detention in February 2024. He detailed beatings to his buttocks, extreme pressure applied to his genitals, and forced anal penetration with two different objects. "I tried to prevent them by clenching my muscles, but I could not. They forced it in very deep, it was extremely painful," he recounted, adding that he screamed loudly from the agony.
The assault left him bleeding from his rectum for over three weeks, with no medical treatment provided in his overcrowded cell. He was forced to use wads of toilet paper to staunch the bleeding and collapsed twice when ordered to stand afterward. Al-Saei was held without charge or trial until June 2025, and about forty days after his release, he decided to publicly share his experience despite the risks.
Systematic Pattern of Abuse Documented
A new report from the human rights organization B'Tselem, released this week, documents what it describes as a grave pattern of sexual violence in Israeli detention facilities and prisons. The report details abuse ranging from threats of sexual assault and forced stripping to actual sexual assaults including beatings to genitals causing severe injuries, setting dogs on prisoners, and forced anal penetration with various objects.
B'Tselem's executive director, Yuli Novak, stated that "The Israeli regime has turned its prisons into a network of torture camps for Palestinians, as part of a coordinated onslaught on Palestinian society intended to destroy their existence as a collective." She added that despite international condemnations, the global community continues to grant Israel what she called full immunity for these actions.
Additional Testimonies Reveal Similar Horrors
Tamer Qarmut, 41, provided testimony to B'Tselem describing his own experience of sexual violence after being detained by Israeli soldiers in November 2023. Despite having been disabled by a leg injury in his teens, Qarmut was accused of being a militant and beaten so severely he sustained permanent hearing damage. He described being attacked by a dog and then raped by a soldier with a wooden stick, an assault that included being forced to lick the implement afterward.
Qarmut was held for nearly two years without charge or trial before his release in October last year under a deal brokered by former US President Donald Trump. His account aligns with numerous other testimonies collected by human rights organizations documenting systematic abuse in Israeli detention facilities.
Wider Context of Prisoner Abuse and Deaths
The B'Tselem report indicates that since October 2023, Israeli detention centers have been transformed into what the organization describes as a network "dedicated to the abuse of inmates as policy," where torture has become an accepted norm. Beyond sexual violence, the report documents other forms of torture including:
- Electric shocks and use of teargas
- Jailers burning prisoners with boiling liquids and cigarettes
- Systematic denial of medical care leading to amputations and loss of senses
- Setting dogs on detainees
At least ninety-eight Palestinians have died in Israeli jails since October 2023, with the actual toll likely substantially higher. Many were young with no prior health conditions. Abdul Rahman Mirie, a 34-year-old carpenter, died in November 2023 leaving behind three young sons and a daughter. Prisoners in nearby cells reported hearing him call out "Brother, come help me, I'm being tortured" during his final hours. His family cannot confirm the cause of death or bury him because Israel continues to hold his body.
Official Responses and Lack of Accountability
The Israeli prison service has categorically rejected what it called "false allegations" in the B'Tselem report, stating it is "not aware of the claims described" by al-Saei and other survivors. A spokesperson added that "All inmates are held in lawful custody, with due regard for their rights, including access to medical care as required and the provision of living conditions in accordance with the law."
However, the report notes that abuse of Palestinians is not hidden within the system. Prison authorities reportedly boast of mistreatment, which receives public backing from Israeli politicians and the judicial system, approval in Israeli media, and has become normalized in Israeli public opinion. In 2024, Israeli military prosecutors charged several soldiers over a violent rape at the Sde Teiman military detention center, representing the only attempt to prosecute Israeli guards for sexual violence in detention centers after October 2023.
Personal Consequences for Speaking Out
Al-Saei has paid a significant personal price for his decision to speak publicly about his experience. Forced to move away from gossiping neighbors, he has struggled to find work and is haunted by vivid nightmares about his children's future. Yet he expresses no regret about becoming a voice for those who cannot face adding new pain to deep trauma.
"It was my choice," he said, explaining that during his sixteen months in jail he saw clear evidence in overcrowded cells that many other prisoners had been assaulted. "Even if the others didn't speak about it, it was obvious they also had this experience." His testimony adds to growing documentation of what human rights organizations describe as systematic abuse within Israel's detention system.
