For the first time, the United Nations listed Israeli forces among the parties suspected of conflict-related sexual violence.
Foreign AffairsMiddle East
- Omissions
- The UN had already included Israeli forces in its conflict-related sexual violence report in 2024 — BBC and PBS both reported that Israeli forces were 'put on the UN sexual violence in warzones blacklist for the first time' in that report — so the 'for the first time' qualifier in a July 2026 speech is not literally accurate; the 2026 listing is better described as the UN again placing Israeli forces on the list.
- Sources consulted are secondary (BBC, PBS, Al Jazeera) plus the UN document record (UNISPAL) for the existence of the 2026 report; no primary UN document text explicitly naming Israel was directly retrieved in the searches.
- The most recent UN report (2026, published after the 2025 report) is the likely referent of the claim; the speaker could have known it, since it was made public on 29 May 2026, before the 8 July 2026 session.
- Sources
- PrimaryUNISPAL — United Nations Information System on the Question of Palestine (UN document record)Conflict-related sexual violence — 2026 Report of the Secretary-General (S/2026/321), dated 21 April 2026, made public on 29 May 2026; Gaza-related excerpts of the report reproduced.
- SecondaryPBS NewsHourAn annual United Nations report documenting sexual violence in conflicts worldwide has included Israeli forces for the first time since the review began more than 15 years ago.
- SecondaryBBC NewsIsrael put on UN sexual violence in warzones blacklist for first time — Israel says it rejects allegations in a new report by the office of the UN secretary general.
- SecondaryAl JazeeraIsrael, Russia among new additions on UN sexual violence report — New report says nearly 10000 cases of conflict-related sexual violence were recorded worldwide last year.
- SecondaryAl JazeeraUN 'adds Israel to blacklist' for conflict-related sexual violence — Israeli ambassador to the UN says Tel Aviv will cut ties with UN chief Antonio Guterres over the upcoming report.