Torture Through Disease and Epidemics: A Colonial Tactic Used by Britain, America, and Israel

From the earliest days of colonialism, major powers have relied on harsh and unconventional methods to control oppressed peoples. Among these methods was the deliberate spread of disease and epidemics, used as a weapon of physical and psychological torture to break the will of detainees and prisoners.

Colonial regimes such as Britain, the United States, and Israel have all been notorious for employing this tactic. It is not merely a relic of history; it continues to this day, most visibly in the brutal treatment of Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails.

Israel: Scabies as a weapon in occupation prisons

The Palestinian Prisoners’ Club and the Commission of Detainees and Ex-Detainees recently revealed that the Israeli occupation authorities have weaponized scabies in the Negev prison, where the disease is spreading among Palestinian detainees.

A joint statement by the two organizations reported that between October 27 and 30, lawyers visited 35 detainees, 25 of whom were infected with scabies. Instead of providing treatment, prison authorities worsened the outbreak by denying prisoners regular showers, clean clothing, and basic hygiene supplies. Detainees were also forced to wear damp and dirty clothes, turning illness into a form of physical and psychological torture.

This is not an isolated incident. Last August, reports surfaced of physical and sexual abuse of prisoners in Negev prisons, underscoring the persistence of inhumane policies. Israel’s use of disease as a weapon is part of a wider pattern: the systematic denial of basic health services to Palestinians, compounding their suffering and deepening the impact of occupation.

Britain: Plague and smallpox in the colonies

In the 18th century, the British Empire weaponized disease to subjugate colonized peoples, infamously deploying smallpox against the indigenous populations of North America.

One of the most notorious incidents occurred when British troops distributed blankets infected with the smallpox virus to Native American communities. The intent was clear: extermination or population reduction to force submission to colonial rule. The result was catastrophic, the disease spread widely, devastating indigenous communities and killing thousands.

Such acts were not random but part of a calculated strategy to weaken and control colonized populations. History offers multiple examples of Britain’s systematic use of disease as a tool of domination.

The United States: Medical experiments in prisons

In the mid-20th century, the United States carried out inhumane medical experiments on prisoners and marginalized groups. Among the most infamous were the Tuskegee syphilis experiments, in which African American men with syphilis were monitored over decades without being given treatment, even though effective cures were available.

Participants were misled into believing they were receiving medical care. In reality, they were left to suffer the full effects of the disease so researchers could study its progression. These experiments reveal a chilling disregard for human dignity, particularly the lives of Black citizens, under the American system at the time.

Torture through disease and epidemics: A tool of oppression and control

The historical record shows that the use of disease and epidemics against vulnerable populations was never a collection of isolated incidents. It was part of a broader colonial system designed to weaken, control, and subjugate entire peoples.

Today, the deliberate neglect of prisoners’ health, the denial of treatment, and even their exposure to disease, as Israel is accused of doing with Palestinian detainees, constitute systematic policies of physical and psychological torture.

The need for international intervention to protect Palestinian prisoners and other vulnerable groups has never been more urgent. These practices in prisons and detention centers must be explicitly criminalized, and those responsible must be brought before international courts.

The use of disease as a weapon is a flagrant violation of human rights and international law. The global community must act decisively to end these practices and ensure they are never repeated.