“A shameful and absurd decision. » The Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs strongly denounced, Thursday, May 28, the decision of the United Nations to include Israel on the “black list” of sexual violence linked to conflicts. The Jewish state also announced the “freezing” of its relations with the office of the UN Secretary General until the end of Antonio Guterres’ mandate, scheduled for the end of 2026. Russia must also join this list.
This blacklist takes the form of a report which lists each year since 2010 the actors (States, regular armies, militias, rebel groups or armed organizations) suspected of having committed sexual violence in a context of war or occupation. The facts are notably documented by the United Nations missions deployed in the areas concerned, but also supported by testimonies.
The UN classifies acts such as rape, sexual slavery, forced prostitution, forced sterilization, forced nudity or sexual mutilation as “conflict-related sexual violence”. This violence can target anyone, regardless of their age or gender.
Used as a tactic of war, a means of terror or an instrument of torture, this violence often experiences an upsurge in contexts of armed conflict. As part of its peacekeeping operations, the UN has gradually integrated this issue into its priorities. The organization thus monitors the evolution of this violence, its forms and its links with ongoing conflicts, before transmitting its conclusions to the Security Council. UN missions also map the regions where civilian populations are most exposed.
Tel Aviv and Moscow already cited in previous reports
If this year’s report has not yet been officially published, that of July 2025 identified actors involved in fifteen countries. Among those regularly mentioned in recent years are Sudan, DR Congo, Myanmar, Syria, Mali, Daesh, Hamas, as well as certain Sudanese, Burmese or Central African government forces.
Concerning Russia and Israel, the two countries had already been cited in previous UN reports. Moscow was particularly targeted for sexual violence documented for several years in the occupied Ukrainian territories and in detention centers, particularly targeting prisoners of war. Israel, for its part, was mentioned for testimonies denouncing violence committed against Palestinian detainees in Gaza, the West Bank and in certain Israeli detention centers.
In August 2025, Antonio Guterres warned Israel and Russia against their possible inclusion on the list. Although both states strongly contest these accusations, the UN considered that they had not taken measures to stop the violations, which justified the inclusion of the two countries in the 2026 list.
Inscription on this list does not, however, constitute a conviction within the meaning of international criminal law. It is above all a monitoring mechanism set up by the United Nations. Its impact nevertheless remains significant on a diplomatic and symbolic level, through the public denunciation of practices totally contrary to human rights.
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