A new report by the United Nations says armed groups and police units in Gaza have beaten, maimed and publicly executed dozens of Palestinians. The U.N. documented hundreds of cases of extrajudicial punishment, including “kneecapping, bone-breaking with metal pipes or cement bricks and beatings.” Al Jazeera has reported that certain armed groups in Gaza have been known to serve as Israeli agents, and that Israel has provided weapons and other assistance for these groups to oppose Hamas.

In related news, Dr. Hussam Abu Safiya, the director of Kamal Adwan Hospital in northern Gaza who was detained by Israeli forces in December 2024, has been reportedly transferred to another prison and placed in solitary confinement, according to the Israeli group Physicians for Human Rights. Abu Safiya has reportedly faced torture, starvation and denial of medical care as his health worsens after over 500 days of Israeli imprisonment without charge.

Meanwhile, a separate U.N. report has found Israeli forces are directly involved in settler attacks that have killed, wounded and displaced Palestinians ​in the occupied West Bank, while Israeli soldiers protect settlers. This comes as France has banned Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich from entering the country for promoting the annexation of the occupied West Bank and Gaza.

In related news, Italian prosecutors have launched a probe against far-right Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir over reports of torture by members of the Gaza humanitarian aid flotilla who were abducted by Israeli forces last month.