The United Nations (UN) this Friday added Israel and Russia to its blacklist of countries credibly suspected of committing sexual violence in conflict zones, following a rise of over 100% in verified global cases.
The annual report contains harrowing descriptions of abuses by Israeli and Russian forces, joining Hamas, which was already blacklisted.
While listing does not trigger automatic sanctions, it causes severe reputational damage and bars repeated offenders from UN peacekeeping operations.
In response, Israel accused the UN of making a factually disconnected, political decision and announced it is severing all ties with the office of UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres until a successor is appointed later this year. UN representatives stated that an invitation to investigate allegations in Israel was ultimately suspended due to the ongoing war in Gaza.
–Reuters–
