Palestine calls for UN investigation into thousands of missing persons

The Permanent Mission of the State of Palestine to the United Nations in Geneva has issued an urgent appeal to various UN special procedure mechanisms regarding the disappearance and fate of thousands of Palestinians in the occupied territories, particularly within the Gaza Strip.

Representing the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates, the mission addressed several bodies, including the Working Group on Enforced or Involuntary Disappearances, the Working Group on Arbitrary Detention, and special rapporteurs concerning human rights in the occupied territories, torture, and extrajudicial executions. The appeal highlights that thousands remain missing, including women and children, some of whom are believed to be trapped under rubble following the destruction of civilian infrastructure.

The mission warned that withholding information regarding the detention locations and conditions of prisoners—including medical professionals—increases the risks of torture, ill-treatment, and death. Palestine has called on UN mechanisms to compel Israel to immediately disclose the fate of all detainees, publish a comprehensive and updated registry of identities and detention details, and return the bodies of deceased Palestinians to their families.