Western media has failed to accurately describe events at the heart of an Israeli military scandal, after the country’s top military lawyer was arrested for leaking footage of IDF soldiers allegedly gang-raping a Palestinian prisoner in a detention centre.

The attack was so brutal that the man was hospitalised with a ruptured bowel and intestines, severe anal and lung injuries and broken ribs. He needed multiple surgical operations for his injuries. The soldiers “inserted a sharp object into [his] anus and ripped his rectum apart”, according to Mondoweiss.

However, Western mainstream media outlets including Sky News, the BBC, Channel 4, The Guardian, The Financial Times, Bloomberg, The Times, The Telegraph and The Independent have failed to use the word ‘rape’ in their headlines when reporting on the story. The incident has been largely referred to as ‘abuse’.