Palestinian prisoners endure 'systematic torture' before their release, monitor says

According to the Palestinian Prisoners' Affairs Association, Israel subjects Palestinian detainees to violent beatings and humiliation before releasing them.

Abdullah al-Zaghari, head of the Palestinian Prisoners Society (PPS), stated in a statement on Sunday that most of the Palestinians released from Israeli prisons as part of the Gaza ceasefire deal were subjected to "systematic torture" in the days leading up to their release. The group's latest report indicates that forms of torture and abuse included scalding detainees with boiling water and urinating on them.

Zaghari said this was "an Israeli attempt to take revenge on them," and he urged the mediators of the ceasefire agreement, the Red Cross teams, and other key players to ensure the safety and dignity of those released, while also pressuring Israel to stop the torture. "The Red Cross must assume its responsibilities to take care of the released prisoners until they reach their places of residence, just as it ensured the arrival of the Israeli prisoners released from the Gaza Strip."

Zaghari added, "There are shocking testimonies of severe beatings that prisoners were subjected to before and after their release, especially those released to the Gaza Strip," noting that most prisoners suffer from illnesses due to poor detention conditions, including scabies. "[This] proves the mentality of the occupier, who is trying to break the image of the Palestinian prisoner and distort it in front of his people." The Commission of Detainees and Ex-Detainees Affairs also reported that most prisoners in Israeli prisons "suffer from fatigue, emaciation, and weight loss." "Some prisoners fainted, but no doctor or nurse came to examine them and transfer them to the clinic."

In early August of last year, the Israeli human rights organization B'Tselem accused Israeli authorities of systematically abusing Palestinians in torture camps, subjecting them to severe violence and sexual assault. Its report, titled "Welcome to Hell," was based on the testimonies of 55 former detainees from the Gaza Strip, the occupied West Bank, East Jerusalem, and Israeli citizens. The vast majority of detainees were held without trial. Torture occurred in civil and military detention facilities across Israel, leading to the deaths of at least 60 Palestinians in Israeli custody in less than 10 months. The abuse in all facilities was systematic, "unquestionably indicating an organized, open policy by Israeli prison authorities."

Meanwhile, an investigation by the Israeli newspaper Haaretz revealed that a quarter of Palestinian prisoners in Israeli prisons have contracted scabies in recent months. The report, which cited prison officials, came as a result of a petition filed by human rights organizations. Palestinians held by Israel have stated that the treatment they receive is deliberate, not negligent. One prisoner quoted by Haaretz said, "When we ask for treatment, they tell us that we are terrorists and must die." Physicians for Human Rights stated that prisoners are deprived of washing machines during detention and are not given enough clothing.

Amina al-Tawil, a researcher at the Palestinian Center for Prisoner Studies, told MEE that Palestinian human rights bodies have been raising alarms about diseases in prisons. Al-Tawil said that overcrowding is a major cause of disease spread, and the measures taken by Israel are also considered deliberate to cause suffering, such as not isolating prisoners once an infection is discovered and not providing treatment. There are currently over 10,400 Palestinians imprisoned, with at least 3,376 of them under administrative detention.