Freed Palestinian prisoners reveal severe abuses in Israeli prisons

By Al Mayadeen English
Source: Agencies + Al Mayadeen
1 Feb 2025 22:21

ICRC officials expressed outrage over the manner in which "Israel" released Palestinian prisoners during Saturday’s prisoner exchange.

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A freed Palestinian prisoner reveals signs of scabies a day after his release from Israeli prisons (AFP)

Recently released Palestinian prisoners and detainees have reported severe abuses committed by the Israeli prison authorities against them.

Testimonies from the detainees freed under the Al-Aqsa Flood prisoner exchange with "Israel" have revealed the extent of the crimes they endured before their release from Israeli occupation prisons, including days of severe beatings by prison guards, which resulted in some sustaining rib fractures.

The Prisoners Information Office stated that these brutal practices reflect the level of abuse inflicted on prisoners in Israeli prisons, which has escalated to unprecedented levels since October 7, 2023.

The Information Office highlighted widespread physical and psychological torture, systematic starvation, and deliberate medical neglect, leading to the outbreak of diseases, including scabies, among the prisoners.

The immediate transfer of several released detainees to hospitals for treatment after years in captivity "underscores the horrific conditions they endured in these fascist prisons, where the [Israeli] occupation employs brutal torture methods that violate all international laws and conventions related to prisoners' rights," the statement emphasized.

It stressed that the torture, suppression, and abuse inflicted on Palestinian detainees “constitute war crimes and crimes against humanity,” calling for urgent intervention from the international community, the United Nations, and all human rights and humanitarian organizations to halt these violations and ensure accountability for those responsible.

Additionally, officials from the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) expressed outrage over the manner in which "Israel" released Palestinian prisoners during Saturday’s prisoner exchange between the occupation authorities and the Palestinian Resistance, Press TV reported.

The Palestinian detainees, handed over to the ICRC after their release from an Israeli prison, were led out in shackles, their hands behind their heads, and wearing bracelets bearing Israeli symbols.

According to the Israeli newspaper Haaretz, ICRC staff were shocked by the treatment of the Palestinian prisoners.

Issa al-Darabi, a prisoner released from Ramon prison, shared with Al Mayadeen the harrowing experience of Palestinian detainees inside Israeli jails. He revealed that the Israeli occupation was employing a policy of systematic starvation against the detainees, while its soldiers continued their daily lives as though they were in their own homes.

Freed Palestinian detainee Issa al-Derbaei exposed the brutal treatment he and others endured in "Israeli" prisons before their forced displacement from the occupied West Bank to Gaza in the fourth round of the prisoner-captive exchange.

In a testimony to #AlMayadeen, he… pic.twitter.com/VTHgi6ANGY
— Al Mayadeen English (@MayadeenEnglish) February 1, 2025

The Palestinian Prisoners Society also reported that Israeli authorities are engaging in systematic repression against released detainees and preventing their families from holding any welcoming receptions.

In parallel, the Ramallah and al-Bireh governorates reported that 10 released detainees were transferred to hospitals due to their critical health conditions resulting from the abuse they endured during their detention.

In Gaza, freed prisoners were taken to the European Hospital in Khan Younis, in the southern part of the enclave, for medical examinations following their release.

Earlier, Hamas said the ongoing violations against Palestinian detainees demand immediate action from the United Nations, the international community, and human rights and humanitarian organizations.

The Palestinian group condemned the ongoing horrific violations against the courageous Palestinian detainees, labeling them as "war crimes" and "crimes against humanity." The movement highlighted that several detainees were transferred directly from the occupation’s prisons to hospitals to receive medical treatment due to the abuse and torture they endured.

Al Mayadeen's correspondent in Gaza reported that the detainees released as part of the prisoner exchange deal endured severe beatings by jailers for several days before their release. Our correspondent also reported on Saturday that some of the released detainees sustained rib fractures resulting from brutal beating by Israeli jailers over several days.