Beating, starving, and raping the occupation commits brutal violations against Palestinian prisoners

Reports continue regarding Israeli violations committed against Palestinian prisoners in occupation prisons, which have escalated since last October 7, claiming the lives of many of them.

A statement issued by the United Nations Committee to Investigate Israeli Practices in the Occupied Palestinian Territories said on Wednesday that male and female prisoners are subjected to harassment, assault and intimidation using dogs, in addition to being prevented from communicating with their families or the International Committee of the Red Cross or enjoying the legal guarantees provided to them by law. International.

Starvation policy

The Hebrew newspaper "Haaretz" quoted unnamed security sources as saying that "the (Israeli) Prison Service is hiding information about the amount of food provided to security prisoners since the start of the war" on the Gaza Strip.

The sources added, "Severe criticism was directed at the Prison Service in several closed discussions held recently, following the petition submitted by the Civil Rights Association (non-governmental), and it is being discussed today (Wednesday) in the Supreme Court."

The newspaper noted: “The petition was submitted after receiving dozens of testimonies from security prisoners and detainees who are not affiliated with the Hamas movement, that they lost tens of kilograms of their weight, after the Israeli security apparatus greatly reduced their food intake, to the point of starvation.”

The newspaper said that Ben Gvir, leader of the extreme right-wing "Jewish Power" party, bragged on more than one occasion in recent months that he was behind the reduction in food rations provided to Palestinian prisoners.

In recent weeks, pictures of many Palestinian prisoners who lost weight significantly a few months after their arrest have been circulated.

Brutal torture and rape

Human rights reports also indicated that the prison rooms suffer from severe overcrowding, and that prisoners find it extremely difficult to shower. In addition to the lack of hot water, personal hygiene materials, and the absence of underwear and outer clothing, the time given to each detainee to shower does not exceed two minutes once a day. The week was fine, which caused fungi to appear on the bodies of some of them. All of this is accompanied by the accumulation of waste inside the rooms due to the absence of cleaning tools and materials.

In the same context, a joint statement by the Prisoners and Ex-Prisoners’ Affairs Authority (governmental) and the Palestinian Prisoners’ Club (non-governmental) stated that “the number of martyrs in Israeli prisons and camps announced since the beginning of the war of extermination (last October 7) by the competent institutions reached At least 18 martyrs, in addition to dozens of Gaza detainees who died in occupation prisons and camps, and their identities were not revealed.”

The statement indicated that "the crime of torture as a policy formed the basis of the Israeli colonial structure, and the occupation practiced this crime as an approach, and worked to develop many tools and methods to consolidate it that went beyond the definition adopted by the international human rights system for the crime of torture."

He added: "Since the start of the genocidal war in Gaza, and with the escalation of arrests that affected more than 9,400 citizens of the West Bank, in addition to thousands from Gaza, and hundreds of Palestinians inside (Israel), torture operations have escalated in an unprecedented level and intensity."

He pointed out that "the detainees' testimonies indicate the use of psychological and physical torture methods, which actually begin from the first moment of arrest through the brutal method of arrest, systematic intimidation operations, severe beatings, and restraint through which they deliberately cause severe pain in the detainee's limbs."

Testimonies indicate "exposure to sexual assaults, including rape crimes. Severe beatings and severe torture, in addition to the martyrdom of prisoners and detainees, caused hundreds of detainees to suffer fractures, specifically in the ribs, leaving them without treatment."

Based on data from the Prisoners and Ex-Prisoners Affairs Authority (official), the Israeli authorities have arrested more than 9,400 Palestinians in the occupied West Bank, including occupied East Jerusalem, since the beginning of the war on October 7, not including arrests in the Gaza Strip.