To Anadolu, Palestinian child recounts ordeal of Israeli prison after release in swap deal

By Yazan Samar

ISTANBUL (AA) - In Israeli prisons, Palestinians face harsh conditions, from beatings to hunger, cold and other abuse, according to Osama Naif Marmash, a child recently released under a prisoner swap deal between Tel Aviv and resistance groups in the Gaza Strip.

"Every week, the Israeli army comes to beat us, taking away all our clothes, blankets, and mattresses," Marmash told Anadolu Sunday in a recorded interview. He had been held without charge in administrative detention for the past five months.

Noting that Palestinian inmates learned about the prisoner swap deal on Friday after the release of several inmates, the boy hailing from the northern occupied West Bank city of Nablus said they had been made to remain in the cold since 8 a.m. "until the Red Cross came and took us from Ofer Prison."

That morning, Israeli soldiers came and splashed the prisoners with water despite the cold weather, he added.

"The food allocated for the prisoners is very limited," said Marmash.

The prisoner swap is part of a temporary four-day pause that began on Friday, also including the delivery of humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip.

Palestinian authorities on Sunday released the names of Palestinian prisoners set to be released in the third batch of hostage exchange between Israel and Hamas, including those of 39 children.

During the first three days of the pause, Hamas released 40 Israelis and 18 foreigners, while Israel released 117 Palestinians.

The pause, mediated by Qatar, Egypt and the US, went into effect on Friday, temporarily halting Israel's attacks on the Gaza Strip.

Israel launched a massive military campaign in the Gaza Strip following an Oct. 7 cross-border attack by Hamas.

It has since killed at least 14,854 Palestinians, including 6,150 children and more than 4,000 women, according to health authorities in the enclave. The official Israeli death toll stands at 1,200.

*Writing by Ziad Aslan in Ankara