Abu Ghraib horrors relived with shocking photo of wounded, semi-naked Gaza detainee

An image of a wounded Palestinian man, handcuffed and stripped down to his underwear, has highlighted possible continued abuses in Gaza despite a ruling by the world’s top court last month calling on Israel to end its brutal assault.

The photo shows a shackled, semi-naked, injured Palestinian man sitting on a chair with an Israeli soldier standing over him.

It was reportedly taken at a school in Gaza City and brought back memories of Abu Ghraib prison near Baghdad when Iraqi detainees were humiliated and tortured by American guards.

Reporter Younis Tirawi shared footage on X of the unnamed Palestinian man being escorted by Israeli troops, who was reportedly wounded by shrapnel but not in critical condition.

Late last year, Israeli forces rounded up dozens of Palestinian men in Gaza City during a mass arrest campaign, who were forced to strip down to their underwear, blindfolded, and handcuffed.

Images shared of the men as they were held in a football stadium went viral and caused uproar.

Israeli media had claimed that the images showed suspected Hamas members surrendering themselves. Among them was Diaa Al-Kahlout, the Gaza correspondent for The New Arab's Arabic-language sister service, who was later released and spoke of his ordeal.

Since then, similar instances of abuse have been captured on camera countless times.

Last week, the Palestinian foreign affairs ministry called for an international probe into "Israeli massacres" in Gaza after the discovery of a mass grave.

Thirty bodies were discovered in body bags in a schoolyard in the northern Gaza Strip. Some reports said the victims appeared to be blindfolded and tortured before being killed.

'Gaza’s Abu Ghraib'

Social media users have likened the distressing images to the infamous 2004 'Abu Ghraib' torture incident in Iraq during the US invasion of the country when images of naked and hooded Iraqi detainees sparked outcry across the world.

Since Israel's 7 October assault on Gaza, shocking images of rights abuses and news of mass graves have raised questions about Israel’s compliance with the International Court of Justice (ICJ) ruling after the country was accused of genocide by South Africa.

Israel has also been accused of widespread abuses and torture of Palestinian detainees in the occupied West Bank, where prisoners can be held indefinitely without charge.

The 26 January ruling ordered Israel to take every necessary step to avert genocide and swiftly implement measures to guarantee access to essential services and humanitarian assistance for Gaza’s civilian population, among other provisional measures.

The ICJ demanded Israel safeguard genocide evidence and report on its compliance within a month.

Despite this, the death toll from Israeli air strikes continues to rise and Israel’s defence minister last week announced his military would turn its attention to Rafah, the Gaza Strip’s southernmost city, now hosting hundreds of thousands of displaced Palestinians.

Since 7 October, Israel’s unprecedented air and ground offensive has killed close to 27,500 people, mostly women and children.

The bombardment has also destroyed much of the territory's infrastructure - including schools, hospitals, and homes - rendering it uninhabitable.