United Nations Secretary General Antonio Guterres speaks to members of the Security Council during a meeting to address the situation in the Middle East, including the Palestinian question, at UN headquarters in New York City, New York, US, April 18, 2024. Photo: REUTERS/Eduardo Munoz

i24 News – A senior UN official whose report placed Israel on a sexual-violence blacklist alongside Hamas admitted she had not personally reviewed the evidence before accusing Israeli bodies of sex crimes against Palestinian detainees.

Pramila Patten, the UN secretary-general’s special representative on sexual violence in conflict, made the admission after her office included Israeli security bodies in a report on conflict-related sexual violence.

“I made it clear to Israel I would not visit any detention facility, even if offered. It’s not the responsibility of my office to do any verification,” she said at a press conference, replying to a question. “The information is verified with a very robust methodology of verification and documentation. I am a recipient. I compile that information and I present it to the Secretary-General.”

Further probed whether she saw the evidence with her eyes, Patten replied “no, because it’s not my job.”

Israel has sharply rejected the allegations and announced it was freezing ties with the office of UN Secretary-General António Guterres. Jerusalem said the decision to place Israel on the same blacklist as Hamas was politically motivated and reflected the UN’s ongoing bias against the Jewish state.

Israel’s Ambassador to the UN Danny Danon said his mission would halt contact with Guterres’s office, accusing the secretary-general of giving legitimacy to “false accusations” against Israel while equating it with the terror group responsible for the October 7 massacre.

The move marks a further deterioration in relations between Israel and Guterres, whose conduct during the Gaza war has repeatedly drawn Israeli criticism. Israel has accused the UN of ignoring Hamas’s use of civilians and civilian infrastructure while amplifying unverified allegations against Israeli forces.