On December 7, 2023, Israeli security forces arrested Palestinian journalist Diaa al-Kahlout, chief bureau correspondent for the pan-Arab newspaper Al-Araby al-Jadeed, in Beit Lahia, along with several family members.
Al-Kahlout told the Israeli human rights group B’Tselem that soldiers forced him and about 300 other men to strip down to their underwear in the cold, before binding their hands behind their backs, and blindfolding them. They were transported to Zikim military base on the coast, still nearly naked and exposed to harsh December temperatures.
Al-Kahlout told CPJ in an April 2024 interview that he was repeatedly beaten, insulted, and mocked, despite clearly identifying himself as a journalist, during interrogations by the Israeli army and Shin Bet intelligence, and had his mouth taped shut to stop him arguing.
In the B’Tselem account, al-Kahlout said an Israeli soldier struck him from behind while he was forced to crouch, blindfolded, as interrogators accused him of terrorism and being a Hamas commander. He said Shin Bet officers questioned him over a 2018 Al-Araby al-Jadeed article, written by someone else, about Sayeret Matkal, a failed Israeli operation in Gaza.
Al-Kahlout said he was transferred to the Sde Teiman military camp, where prisoners were corralled “like sheep,” and subjected to cold, deprivation of food and water, and frequent beatings. Al-Kahlout spent 33 days there and was moved repeatedly between barracks.
He told CPJ that he endured prolonged stress positions, constant blindfolding, forced kneeling, sleep deprivation, denial of bathroom access, and interrogations about his reporting and journalistic communication with Palestinian officials. Al-Kahlout said in an interview with Al-Araby TV that he was beaten and put in stress positions on days when international organizations made statements about him.
On January 9, 2024, he was taken by bus to Kerem Shalom border crossing between Israel and Gaza and left there, empty handed.
Al-Kahlout told CPJ that he lost 45 kilograms in custody, and experienced a severe spinal disc injury, chest infections, and foot wounds. He added that he experiences ongoing trauma, including persistent back pain, inflammation, sleep disturbance, and an inability to see clearly following his prolonged blindfolding.
CPJ could not independently verify Al-Kahlout’s allegations, but they are in line with human rights groups’ descriptions of the treatment of some Palestinians in Israeli custody.
The Israeli military’s North America spokesperson told CPJ via email in 2024, “The individuals detained are treated in accordance with international law. The IDF has never, and will never, deliberately target journalists. The IDF protocols are to treat detainees with dignity. Incidents in which the guidelines were not followed will be looked into.”
CPJ’s emailed request to the Shin Bet for comment did not immediately receive a reply.