Stripping Gazan detainees not a ‘practice’ going forward, Israel tells US

Israel has informed the US government that people detained from Gaza were stripped “to ensure that they are not wearing suicide vests.”

US State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller told reporters on Wednesday that Israel has “made it clear going forward that that will not be their practice”.

Images released last week showed Palestinian detainees stripped to their underwear, with the Israeli government saying that they were pictures of Hamas fighters, but Palestinians claim most of the individuals in the photos were civilians.

“What they have informed us is that they conduct searches on detained individuals in Gaza to ensure that they are not wearing suicide vests, that they don’t have other weapons, and that they propose no danger to IDF forces. They made clear to us, however, that these photographs should not have been taken, should not have been released and they made it clear going forward that that will not be their practice. And that if they do conduct searches of detainees, they will give them their clothes back immediately. Those are obviously appropriate steps to take.”

During his press briefing, Miller also touched on the return of Armenian and Azerbaijani prisoners. “We welcome the return of the Armenian and Azerbaijani detainees earlier today, and reports that additional confidence building measures are being discussed. We will continue to work with Armenia and Azerbaijan to move the process forward. We continue to believe that peace is possible if both parties are willing to pursue it.”