Palestine calls on UN to investigate missing persons and detainees

The Permanent Mission of Palestine to the United Nations Office at Geneva has submitted a letter to various UN special procedure mechanisms, including the Working Group on Enforced or Involuntary Disappearances and the Working Group on Arbitrary Detention. The letter, sent on behalf of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, calls for an urgent investigation into the fate of thousands of Palestinians, including women and children, who remain missing in the occupied territories.

The mission reports that many individuals are believed to be trapped under the rubble of destroyed buildings in Gaza, while others have remains that cannot be located. The destruction of civil infrastructure and forensic services has further complicated the identification of the deceased.

Additionally, the letter alleges that information regarding the location, legal status, and health of Palestinian detainees—including doctors and healthcare workers—is being withheld by Israel. Palestine is requesting that the UN act to ensure the disclosure of the whereabouts of all missing and detained persons, and that the bodies of deceased Palestinians be identified and immediately returned to their families.