The U.S. State Department is reviewing an Israeli Defence Forces (IDF) unit responsible for Gaza detainee custody over human rights violations that could affect U.S. aid, according to two Israeli and two U.S. officials who spoke to Axios.
Several members of the unit, known as “Force 100”, are currently on trial in Israel for the alleged gang rape of a Palestinian detainee at the Sde Teiman detention facility, which human rights organisations have dubbed “the Israeli Guantanamo”.
Multiple reports in Israeli and international media have highlighted alleged human rights violations at Sde Teiman, which houses Hamas fighters accused of participating in the October 7 attacks and serves as an interrogation centre for Palestinians arrested in Gaza.
According to Haaretz, more than 30 detainees have died at the facility since October 7.
The IDF has begun gradually closing the detention centre in recent weeks following significant international criticism.
Israeli human rights organisations have also petitioned the country’s Supreme Court regarding alleged violations at the camp.
Under the 1997 Leahy Law, U.S. foreign assistance and Department of Defense training programmes are prohibited from supporting foreign security, military, and police units found to have committed human rights violations.
Should the State Department’s review conclude that the Israeli unit violated human rights, it could be blacklisted under the Leahy Law and barred from receiving any U.S. military aid or training.
A U.S. official stated that America has a memorandum of understanding with Israel requiring coordination on such reviews.
The official emphasised that the State Department has not yet reached any decisions or final conclusions regarding the unit.
A second U.S. official noted that Israel received a questionnaire about the unit several months ago.
“It’s part of a consultation process we initiated with the Israelis about this unit as part of our Leahy Law agreement”, the official said.
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin recently expressed concerns in a letter to their Israeli counterparts about Palestinian detainee conditions and requested Tel Aviv grant Red Cross access to prison facilities.
However, last August, Blinken terminated an investigation into the IDF’s Netzah Yehuda battalion regarding human rights violations in the occupied West Bank without imposing sanctions.
Despite findings of grave human rights violations in April, the U.S. deemed that the Israeli military had taken steps to address their concerns.
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