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The United Nations added Israel and Russia to its annual blacklist of parties credibly suspected of using sexual violence in conflict zones, prompting Israel to sever all ties with U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres' office and declare it was "done with this secretary-general."
"The decision to blacklist Israel and accuse us of using sexual violence as a weapon of war is an outrageous decision," Israeli Ambassador to the U.N. Danny Danon said in a video posted on X.
"The secretary-general and his team continue to spread lies against Israel. To put us and Hamas terrorists on the same list, that's unacceptable," he said.
Israel's mission to the U.N. said it will have no contact with Guterres' office for as long as he serves in the role. His term ends Dec. 31, 2026.
The U.N. secretary-general's annual report on conflict-related sexual violence, reviewed by Agence France-Presse (AFP) ahead of its circulation among Security Council members on Thursday, said investigators faced "continued denial of access" from Israeli authorities.
The report states that "in 2025, patterns of sexual violence against Palestinians detained in Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territory continued to be documented" and that the cases confirmed by the U.N. are indicative of multi-year trends but are not "comprehensive," given the denial of access to Israeli detention centers.
The U.N. confirmed multiple cases of sexual violence, described as including "as a form of torture," against 14 men, seven women, nine boys and one girl in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank dating back to 2023.
The violations include rape with an object, gang rape, physical violence against genitals, forced nudity and body searches conducted "without apparent security justification."
The perpetrators are identified in the report as members of the Israeli military, security forces and prison services.
Guterres notified Israel of its inclusion in a letter shared by Danon's office, stating that last year's report had "put the Israeli armed and security forces on notice for potential listing in the next reporting cycle" and that there had been an "increasing number of cases" of sexual violence against Palestinian detainees verified since.
Guterres acknowledged Israel had engaged with his representative on the matter but said the country "has not directly addressed" the implementation of measures to stop the problem.
U.N. spokesman Stephane Dujarric said the report would be shared with Security Council members on Thursday and made public in approximately 10 days.
Israel's Foreign Ministry called the decision "shameful and absurd," with spokesman Oren Marmorstein writing on X that it was "further proof of the U.N.'s true nature: a politicized and corrupt organization that has abandoned its founding principles and systematically targets Israel as its primary mission."
The ministry said the "sole motivation" for the decision was "an attempt to create a fake symmetry between Israel and the real sexual atrocities committed by Hamas."
Hamas is also on the list for allegations of sexual violence committed during the group's Oct. 7, 2023, attack on Israel and alleged abuse of hostages.
Danon rejected the denial-of-access charge. "We invited the representative of the UN to come to Israel to check those ridiculous allegations. They chose not to come," he said.
Dujarric characterized Israel's announcement as "symbolic" and said it was unlikely to change U.N. operations, adding the organization would "continue to work with the Israeli Mission."
"For our part, the secretary-general's door remains open," Dujarric said, adding, "engaging is always a better solution than disengaging."
Reem Alsalem, the U.N. Special Rapporteur on violence against women and girls, welcomed the listing. "This could not have come soon enough," she wrote on X.
"I had in the past expressed my disappointment that Israel was not listed already, given the systematic, large-scale and horrific sexual violence perpetrated by Israel against Palestinian women, men and children that have been independently documented and verified," she added.
Russia was also added to the blacklist.
The report draws on data from the Human Rights Monitoring Mission in Ukraine, citing 310 cases of conflict-related sexual violence, including rape, genital mutilation and electric shocks, committed overwhelmingly against men in occupied Ukrainian territories and within Russia itself, perpetrated by armed forces and prison services against prisoners of war.
Ukraine, while not included on the blacklist, still faces criticism.
The report notes 31 cases of sexual violence committed by Ukrainian security forces, mostly pre-2025, but says the government has strengthened legislation and permits U.N. investigations.
More broadly, the report deplores a "marked" increase in conflict-related sexual violence in 2025 compared to 2024, described as "characterized by extreme brutality and overwhelmingly targeting women and girls."
Relations between the U.N. and Israel have been described as at an all-time low since Hamas's Oct. 7, 2023, attack.
Guterres was declared "persona non grata" by Israel in 2024. Russia, since 2023, and Israel, since 2024, have also appeared on a separate annual U.N. list concerning violence against children in conflicts.
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