A/HRC/31/40 C. 1. Authorities in Gaza Due process violations, torture and ill-treatment 69. Arbitrary arrests and other due process violations, as well as torture and ill-treatment by security forces, remained issues of concern in Gaza. During the reporting period, the Independent Commission for Human Rights registered at least 708 complaints of arbitrary detention and violations of due process guarantees, and 462 allegations of torture or illtreatment. The majority of allegations were against local police forces, but corrections officers and members of the internal security apparatus also stand accused. 70. Information collected by OHCHR indicates that security forces often arbitrarily summon and sometimes unlawfully detain citizens for prolonged periods of time, often incommunicado. Reported violations included excessive use of force upon arrest, denial of the right to remain silent, and to have legal representation and contact with family. 71. Reports of torture or ill-treatment described beatings with belts, water pipes and sticks, verbal abuse and intimidation, sensory deprivation, shabeh, waterboarding and prolonged solitary confinement. The level of violence employed during certain interrogations required detainees to be hospitalized, including owing to open wounds, internal bleeding and fractures. OHCHR suggests that particularly harsh interrogation techniques appear to be used against detainees suspected of treason or of belonging to Salafi groups. Relatives of detainees were also reportedly targeted for harassment and arrest by security officials. 72. Members and supporters of Fatah in particular have reported a consistent campaign by security forces, in particular the internal security apparatus, of summons and arrests and torture or ill-treatment. For example, a senior Fatah official and his colleagues were reportedly warned by senior security officials, on 31 December 2014, not to mark Fatah’s fiftieth anniversary that week. On 4 January 2015, the official was summoned to Ansar police station and driven to an undisclosed location along with another Fatah member. He was allegedly forced to undress, was interrogated and was denied the opportunity to pray. He was also beaten, forced to endure shabeh and hung from the wall for almost an hour. No arrest warrant was produced and charges were never levelled against him. He claimed that he has been detained and interrogated over 40 times by local security officials owing to his affiliation with Fatah. 2. Rights to freedom of expression and peaceful assembly 73. Reportedly, Gaza authorities have increasingly sought to silence political opposition or critics, and failed to protect persons from third-party attacks due to their beliefs and opinions. Internal security forces (as well as unidentified armed individuals) have allegedly employed excessive use of force and gratuitous violence to disperse peaceful assemblies. 74. Among the rallies disrupted were those of political opponents, gatherings denouncing the deteriorating economic situation, failing public services or protesting actions by security forces. Several individuals were detained in connection with these gatherings and forced to sign “moral codes of conduct” or declarations that they would not disturb peace again. 75. On a few occasions, security forces stated they had intervened during demonstrations because prior authorization had not been sought. Nevertheless, under international human rights law and the Palestinian Public Meetings Law No. 12 of 1998, the prior consent of authorities is not required to hold peaceful assemblies. 76. Palestinian human rights organizations have noted a marked increase in attacks on freedom of the press, either by local authorities or unidentified armed individuals. The 15