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Palestinian Arabs

Mass Incarceration and Torture of Palestinians in Israeli Prisons

Strategic Insights

— 2 min read

Seham Tantesh in Gaza and William Christou in Jerusalem have revealed the harrowing experiences of Palestinian detainees in Israeli prisons. Naseem al-Radee, a 33-year-old government employee from Beit Lahiya, was arrested on December 9, 2023, and spent 22 months in captivity, during which he was subjected to torture, medical neglect, and starvation. The Israeli prison service and military have denied allegations of abuse, stating that prison conditions comply with international law. However, human rights groups, such as B'Tselem, have documented a policy of abuse towards Palestinian detainees in Israeli prisons and detention centers.

Key Takeaways:

  • Naseem al-Radee, a 33-year-old government employee from Beit Lahiya, was arrested on December 9, 2023, and spent 22 months in Israeli captivity without charge.
  • Radee was subjected to torture, including beatings, teargas, rubber bullets, and verbal abuse, in Nafha prison in the Negev desert.
  • The prison conditions were described as extremely harsh, with 14 people crammed into a cell designed for five, and unsanitary conditions led to Radee contracting fungal and skin diseases.
  • Mohammed al-Asaliya, a 22-year-old university student, was also detained in Nafha prison and contracted scabies, and his weight dropped from 75kg to 42kg during detention.
  • Around 2,800 Palestinians from Gaza are detained in Israeli prisons and detention centers without charge, according to the NGO Public Committee Against Torture in Israel (PCATI).
  • The Israeli parliament amended the unlawful combatants law in December 2023 to allow for administrative detention without charge, where an officer has "reasonable grounds to believe" the person is an unlawful combatant.
  • Israeli legal advocates say the mass incarceration of Palestinians coincides with a drastic degradation in detention conditions and that this has become a matter of policy.
  • Tal Steiner, the executive director of PCATI, said that the amount and scale of torture and abuse in Israeli prisons has skyrocketed since the 7 October 2023 attack by Hamas-led militants.
  • Itamar Ben-Gvir, the far-right security minister, has bragged about providing the "minimum amount of food" to detainees, and has been quoted in a social media post as saying that his goal is to ensure that "terrorists" receive the minimum amount of care.

Statistics:

  • 2,800 Palestinians from Gaza are detained in Israeli prisons and detention centers without charge, according to PCATI.
  • Naseem al-Radee's weight dropped from 93kg to 60kg during his 22-month detention.
  • Mohammed al-Asaliya's weight dropped from 75kg to 42kg during his detention.
  • Over 1,700 Palestinian detainees were released from Israeli prisons on Monday, including Radee and Asaliya.
  • The Israeli parliament amended the unlawful combatants law in December 2023 to allow for administrative detention without charge.

Sources:

  • The Guardian
  • B'Tselem
  • Public Committee Against Torture in Israel (PCATI)
  • Human Rights Watch
  • Al Jazeera

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