The United Nations warned Israel and Russia on Thursday that their forces face the risk of being listed among entities suspected of committing sexual violence in conflicts, based on reliable evidence of abuses.

The UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres’ report stated that both countries face the risk of being included on the list of entities suspected of using sexual violence in conflicts, including rape.

The list also includes the Myanmar army, the Sudanese army, and Hamas.

The annual report said: “Due to serious concerns about specific patterns of sexual violence committed by Israeli and Russian military and security forces and affiliated armed groups, these two parties have been notified of the possibility of their inclusion on the list of perpetrators during the period covered by the next report.”

It noted that these concerns mainly relate to violations recorded in detention facilities.

Regarding Israel, the report mentioned “reliable information” indicating that military and security forces committed patterns of violence including “sexual violence” and “forced public nudity and repeated humiliating strip searches.”

In February, the Israeli army announced charges against five soldiers for mistreating a Palestinian detainee in a detention facility established early in the Gaza war triggered by an unprecedented Hamas attack on southern Israel on October 7, 2023.

Charges against one accused included stabbing a man with a sharp object “penetrating an area near the rectum.”

The report referred to “reliable evidence” of violations against Ukrainian prisoners of war in 50 official detention facilities and 22 unofficial ones in Ukraine and Russia.

It documented numerous cases of sexual violence including genital mutilation, beatings, electric shocks, forced nudity, and the use of sexual violence “for humiliation and extracting confessions.”

In 2024, the human rights monitoring mission in Ukraine documented 209 cases of conflict-related sexual violence, including rape.

The report noted that Israel cooperated with the special representative on sexual violence in conflict, but Russia did not.

Israel condemned the report and described the accompanying message from Guterres as “unusual.”

Israeli Ambassador to the UN Danny Danon said: “The UN’s focus should be on the shocking war crimes and sexual violence committed by Hamas and the release of all hostages.”

He added: “Israel will not hesitate to protect its citizens and will continue to act in accordance with international law.”