Israeli prisons slash Palestinians' food rations to starvation levels

By Esra Tekin

ISTANBUL (AA) - Testimony from released Palestinian prisoners shows how Israeli authorities have turned more than a dozen prison facilities into places where Palestinian detainees waste away, with food rations cut to starvation levels.

A freed Palestinian prisoner reported that Israeli guards in the prison said they would only provide “enough food to stay alive.”

“For 11 prisoners, two plates of rice” were given, said Atef Awahdeh in an interview on social media that is going viral.

“Three spoonfuls of rice a day, exactly,” said Sami Khalili, a freed Palestinian prisoner from Nablus.

Saying that he lost eight kilos (17.63 pounds) during 10 days in an Israeli prison, lawyer Sari Hurriyah stated that five people had to share a plate and eat the food with their bare hands.

“When I got out, I weighed 25 (55.2 lbs) kilos less. My family didn’t recognize me,” said Firas Hassan, another prisoner.