Israeli military abducts and strips Palestinian civilians in besieged Gaza

Israeli and Palestinian media have released videos that appear to show scores of stripped Palestinian men in Israeli military custody, with a London-based news outlet saying one of its journalists was among those humiliated by Israeli forces.

The clips had already circulated widely on social media on Thursday, with a preliminary AFP news agency review suggesting the scene was filmed in Beit Lahia in the north of besieged Gaza, though geolocating the footage precisely was difficult.

One clip showed the arm of a soldier in the foreground, suggesting it was filmed by a member of the occupying military.

In another clip, a group of blindfolded Palestinian men are seen sitting with their hands tied behind their backs as Israeli soldiers watch them.

Osama Hamdan, a member of Hamas's political bureau, denounced the "abuse of unarmed civilians who have nothing to do with military operations."

Some Palestinians recognised relatives and denied they had any links to Hamas or any other group.

Hani Almadhoun, a Palestinian American based in Virginia, saw relatives in the picture and told the Reuters news agency they were "innocent civilians with no links to Hamas or any other faction."

"They took them from a house, that belongs to the family, in the area of the market. They detained my brother Mahmoud, 32, his son Omar, 13, my other nephew Aboud, 27, and my father 72, and several of our in-laws."

Civilians identified

Israeli military spokesperson Daniel Hagari, when asked about these images, claimed at a briefing that "terrorists were surrendering".

However, the London-based news outlet Al-Araby al-Jadeed, or The New Arab, said one of the men seen in the photos is its Gaza correspondent Diaa al Kahlout, and that he was rounded up with other civilians and some of his family members.

"Al Kahlout was among dozens of Gaza residents arrested by Israeli forces in Gaza and were forced to strip off their clothes and were searched and humiliated before they were taken to an unknown location, according to eyewitness reports," it said.

Al-Araby strongly condemned the arrest in a statement and called for rights groups to help in securing the release of its journalist.

Ramy Abdu, the founder and chairman of the Geneva-based Euro-Med Human Rights Monitor, said in a post on X that he also recognised his friend Al Kahlout among the detainees, as well as the director of a school and a United Nations employee.

"I had begged him to leave Beit Lahia to go south of Wadi Gaza, but he told me 'How can I leave my dear Nada and my elderly mother?'" Abdu said.

Nada is Al Kahlout's daughter who needs special care and medical equipment to survive, he added.

A young man called Mohammed Al Rai told the Euro-Med Monitor team that he saw at least seven young men being shot dead by the Israeli forces in separate incidents, due to their refusal to comply with the humiliating orders of the Israeli army, the NGO says.

Baseless claims, changing narrative

This was not the first time Tel Aviv was caught making baseless claims or changing the narrative since it started the war on the blockaded enclave.

The initial Israeli death toll was 1,400, which was later revised down to 1,200. Israel blames all deaths on Hamas blitz. But reports have emerged that Israeli military helicopters may have shot dead Israeli civilians during the October 7 chaos.

On November 15, the Israeli military claimed to have found "one AK-47 rifle" behind an MRI machine at Al Shifa Hospital when they stormed it, but when Fox News and BBC were allowed inside to report, they found two, unlike stated before.

CNN said then it was unclear where the second rifle came from, suggesting IDF could have rearranged the weapons.

Also at Al Shifa Hospital, the Israeli military claimed to have found a list of Hamas leaders, which was in fact just an Arabic calendar.

Türkiye's Center for Countering Disinformation has also pointed out how Elon Musk's visit to Israel further exposed the Israeli state's propaganda campaign.

The Center identified a manipulation tactic in the crib footage which was disseminated by Israel with the caption, "one of the symbols of Hamas' attack on Kibbutz, the crib."

Musk was shown several empty shell casings in the crib.

However, the footage captured during the visit of former New Jersey governor Chris Christie on November 12 lacks these casings in the same crib.

Moreover, the crib purportedly filled with empty shell casings shows no signs of damage.

Much of northern Gaza is in ruins after months of Israel's war on the blockaded enclave, where Israel has killed nearly 17,200 people, wounded tens of thousands and displaced some 1.87 million people.