IDF admits marking detained Palestinians with numbers during raid, expresses remorse

The IDF on Tuesday acknowledged that soldiers had marked detained Palestinian suspects with numbers during a military raid in the northern West Bank village of Qabatiya a day earlier, despite previously acknowledging that the practice was inappropriate.

In a statement to The Times of Israel, the military said that commanders had stressed the seriousness of the conduct to the troops involved and that “lessons have been learned” — echoing remarks the IDF made in April.

Footage published Monday showed a Palestinian man speaking to local media with the number 44 written across his forehead after he was questioned by Israeli soldiers during the raid.

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The man said troops had marked others who were interrogated as well, and that soldiers warned him not to take part in clashes if settlers entered the village.

The Haaretz newspaper reported Tuesday that several Palestinians detained and questioned during the operation had numbers written on their foreheads or elsewhere on their bodies. Palestinian sources cited by the newspaper said more people were detained than the two arrests announced by the military and alleged that some were beaten.

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The IDF said the two Palestinians it arrested were suspected of planning attacks, according to the report.

Hadash-Ta’al MK Ahmad Tibi strongly condemned the incident on X, calling it “shocking and disgusting,” and said the act reminded him of “dark times.”

Using numbers on skin to identify people has long been taboo in Israel, harking back to the numbered tattoos used by the Nazis to identify concentration and death camp inmates during the Holocaust.

In a formal response Tuesday, the IDF confirmed that security forces had marked suspects who were questioned during what it described as a brigade-level operation in Qabatiya, in the Menashe Brigade’s area of responsibility.

“Commanders made clear to the troops the seriousness of the act, and lessons have been learned,” the military said.

The admission closely echoed the army’s response to a similar incident in April, when footage showed Palestinian women with numbers written on their hands after they were briefly allowed to enter the IDF-controlled Jenin refugee camp to collect belongings.

At the time, the IDF said troops were trying to maintain an orderly return by directing residents to different sections of the camp, which the military had divided into areas identified by numbers and letters.

The army said the idea of writing the relevant section on each resident’s hand had come from the Palestinians themselves, but nevertheless called the practice a case of “poor judgment.”

The military said at the time that proper conduct had been clarified and that “lessons had been learned.”

The April incident took place during the IDF’s prolonged counterterrorism operation in Jenin and other northern West Bank refugee camps. Israel launched Operation Iron Wall in January 2025, saying it was aimed at rooting out terror groups operating in the area.

The operation displaced tens of thousands of Palestinians.

In remarks to the UN Security Council last month, Ramiz Alakbarov, the UN deputy special coordinator for the Middle East peace process, asserted that 127 Palestinian communities “have experienced full or partial displacement since January 2023,” 47 of which have been entirely displaced.

Alakbarov also said that just in 2026, around 3,800 Palestinians in the West Bank “have been displaced due to settler violence, demolitions and evictions.”

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