Tuesday 24 Mar 2026
The report said the child suffered burn marks from cigarettes and puncture wounds in his leg caused by the nail. (Photo/Reuters)
A Palestinian journalist has reported that Israeli military forces detained and tortured an 18-month-old child in central Gaza to extract information from his father. Medical reports confirm that the child, Karim, sustained cigarette burns and puncture wounds from a nail during the ten-hour detention. While the child was released via the International Committee of the Red Cross, the father remains in custody. This incident occurs amidst broader concerns regarding ceasefire violations and the ongoing humanitarian crisis in the region, where significant Palestinian casualties have been documented since October 2023.
Israeli soldiers have subjected a one-year-old child in central Gaza to torture to pressure his father into making confessions during an interrogation, Palestine TV reported, citing Palestinian journalist Osama Al-Kahlout.
It aired footage showing injuries to the child, identified as Karim, after he was detained by Israeli forces near the Al-Maghazi refugee camp in the central Gaza.
Witnesses said the child's father, Osama Abu Nassar, was traumatised after the death of a horse he used for income.
While taking his child to buy supplies, he was caught up in gunfire near his home and was forced by Israeli soldiers to leave his 18-month-old son on the ground and approach a nearby military checkpoint, where he was stripped and interrogated.
The forces tortured the child in front of his father, including burning one of his legs with cigarettes, pricking him and inserting a nail into his leg, as confirmed by a medical report.
The report said the child suffered burn marks from cigarettes and puncture wounds in his leg caused by the nail.
The child was released about 10 hours later and handed over to his family through the International Committee of the Red Cross in Al-Maghazi, while the father remains in Israeli detention.
The family has appealed to international organisations to intervene to secure the father's release so he can continue receiving medical treatment.
Ceasefire violations
Israel has committed hundreds of violations of the ceasefire since October 2025, killing at least 680 Palestinians and wounding 1,813 others.
Israel has killed over 72,000 Palestinians, mostly women and children, and wounded more than 171,000 others in the genocide since October 2023.
It has reduced most of the enclave to ruins and displaced all of its population.
___
Source: TRT
