Palestinian prisoners subjected to inhumane treatment in Israeli prisons: Activists

By Sule Ozkan and Enes Taha Ersen

ISTANBUL (AA) - Human rights advocates have accused Israeli prison authorities of subjecting thousands of Palestinian detainees to torture and inhumane treatment, including violence, abuse, and sexual harassment.

In interviews with Anadolu, Ahmed Benchemsi, a communications director at Human Rights Watch, and Amina al-Taweel, a spokesperson for the Palestinian Prisoners Center for Studies, narrated the inhumane practices in Israeli prisons and the conditions of Palestinians there.

Benchemsi asserted that since the onset of Israeli attacks on Oct. 7, numerous war crimes have been committed, violating international legal norms and resulting in the illegal detention of Palestinians.

“By the end of 2023, there were precisely 3,291 Palestinians from West Bank and Jerusalem held under administrative detention, which means no charge, no trial and detention based on secret information, all of which are violations of due process guarantees under international law.”

“Also, there were precisely 661 Palestinians from Gaza detained under the Unlawful Combatant Law, which allows for detention without any documentation for 45 days and denies meeting with a lawyer for six months.”

Benchemsi said it is basically a way to legitimize disappearance, which is a crime under the international law. “Today, the total number of prisoners by the beginning of the year is estimated to be around 8,600 talking about Palestinian prisoners. In Israel, this number is according to the Israeli prison services.”

- Terrible things happening

Benchemsi highlighted the sufferings faced by Palestinian men and women in Israeli prisons, including torture, beatings, starvation, strip searches, and sexual harassment.

Regarding Hasharon prison where women are held, Benchemsi said: “It's where Palestinian women get full strip searches that many say are conducted in a very humiliating and degrading manner. Many women imprisoned in the detention center also reported no proper bed covering and very poor food quality and quantity.”

Benchemsi emphasized that the Naqab prison is one of the worst prisons for Palestinian men.

“Naqab is actually the worst prison for Palestinian men. It is basically a desert prison with a big section of it made of tents. There is an Israeli special unit, they're known to conduct brutal raids to the cells. In 2019, a prisoner died after one of these raids.”

He mentioned that international reports on inhumane practices in Israeli prisons are shared with the Israeli Attorney General's Office.

“According to the Committee Against Torture, and I am quoting them here, ‘something very bad is happening in Israeli prisons'."

Lawyers have gathered several testimonies of prisoners and sent them to the Attorney General of Israel. And in these testimonies, Palestinian prisoners complained about severe physical violence leading to serious injuries and probably several fatalities, including one in Ketziot prison.

“They also complain about sexual degradation of women and men, complete with explicit threats to prisoners not to complain about the abuse they suffer.”

- Tortures applied to Palestinians are ‘devilish acts’

Also, Taweel stated that there have been Palestinians who were killed due to severe beatings in Israeli prisons, saying that prisoners are tied naked and beaten to death.

Describing the torture metted out against Israeli prisoners, he said: "We are talking not only about the number of Palestinian detainees but also about the practices carried out from the moment of their arrest.

“Severe beatings, punishment, harassment, threats of rape, completely naked photography, violation of privacy. Some prisoners end up with fractures in their skulls, jaws, chests, backs, or spines. Imagine prisoners whose ears are cut off or who lose their eyes because Israeli soldiers put cigarettes out on their eyes."

Taweel lamented the silence of the international community and human rights organizations regarding Palestinian prisoners, saying, "This is a disgrace for humanity."

She also stated that Palestinian prisoners refrain from speaking to the press after being released due to Israeli pressure.

"The events in the Gaza Strip are beyond belief. The human mind cannot comprehend such atrocities. Palestinians deserve to live with dignity and humanity. Palestinians are doing their best to survive.”

*Writing by Seda Sevencan