The pace of assaults on Palestinian detainees inside Israeli occupation prisons has been steadily on the rise since the outbreak of the Israeli aggression on the Gaza Strip on October 7, the Palestinian Prisoners and Ex-Prisoners Affairs Authority said today.
The Prisoners Affairs Authority explained in a press statement that the Israeli prison administration is preventing family visits and legal representation, completely isolating detainees from the outside world. During the same period, six detainees have lost their lives due to severe torture.
Sections within the prisons witness almost daily raids where heavily armed Israeli soldiers brutally attack detainees using batons, rifles, tear gas, and rubber-coated bullets, resulting in injuries ranging from bruises and contusions to deep wounds, along with fractures in the limbs.
According to the Authority, “Israeli occupation soldiers deliberately vandalize the homes of detainees during arrest raids. This includes violent beatings from the moment of arrest
to the investigation and imprisonment stages. The detainees face verbal abuse, threats, deliberate neglect of their injuries and health conditions, and denial of medical treatment.”
Requests for medical assistance are often met with immediate responses from soldiers threatening more violence and referencing the fate of past prisoner victims who died in Israeli detention, according to the Authority.
The Authority outlined a series of punitive and racist measures suffered by the detainees. These include the absence of aluminum windows on the cell bars, exposing detainees to freezing temperatures. In addition, blankets provided are extremely light and inadequate for protection against the cold.
“Attempts by detainees to close the windows with cardboard result in room invasions and punishment. The food provided is described as terrible, both in quality and quantity, often cold and emitting foul odors,” the statement said. “The quantity allotted for 12 detainees is insufficient for only four. Detainees are also
not allowed access to the courtyard immediately and face restrictions on personal belongings.”
According to the Authority, a significant number of detainees sleep on the floor due to insufficient beds, given the threefold increase in the number of inmates. Shower time is limited to 10 minutes per day and with cold water, and access to the canteen is completely prohibited.
The Authority concluded, “This aggressive crackdown on the detainees coincides with the absence of a role played by human rights institutions in providing minimal protection and oversight of the detainees’ conditions and rights.”
Source: Palestine News and Information Agency – WAFA