Hamas not to agree to deal without permanent ceasefire, withdrawal
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Hamas official Osama Hamdan underlines that the Resistance would not agree to the terms of any ceasefire deal that does not include a permanent ceasefire and an Israeli withdrawal from Gaza.
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Senior Hamas Official Osama Hamdan during a press conference in Beirut, Lebanon (Screengrab)
Senior Hamas official Osama Hamdan criticized the Israeli occupation's response to a ceasefire proposal submitted by the resistance in May, stating that it does not meet the requirements for a permanent ceasefire and full withdrawal from the Gaza Strip.
During a press conference on Tuesday, Hamdan emphasized Hamas's stance communicated to the mediators, which stipulates that they cannot agree to any deal that fails to ensure a lasting ceasefire and comprehensive withdrawal from Gaza.
"The occupation will not see its captives held by the Resistance except through a serious and genuine deal where our Palestinian prisoners enjoy freedom," Hamdan asserted.
Hamdan detailed the severe conditions faced by Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails since October 7, 2023, describing widespread torture and deliberate killings. He noted that the escalation targets prisoners from the West Bank, occupied al-Quds, and Gaza, under what he described as an extremely oppressive government.
Highlighting the discrepancy in the attention given to Israeli captives compared to Palestinian prisoners, Hamdan cited reports from the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA), which indicated that since December, the Israeli occupation sent back the bodies of 225 Palestinian martyrs who had been detained.
Hamdan underlined that the number of prisoners had reached 9,500 since October 7, with inmates enduring severe starvation, humiliation, and physical abuse.
Among the prisoners from Gaza, Hamdan noted, are wounded individuals who have faced further mistreatment, including deliberate killings. He accused the Israeli occupation of enacting laws that contravene international norms, such as legislation permitting the execution of prisoners.
Hamdan urged immediate international action to expose and condemn Israeli crimes against Palestinian prisoners. He also stressed that since 1967, Israel has detained 16,000 women, some of whom have given birth under harsh conditions while shackled.
Currently, over 200 Palestinian children remain imprisoned, facing severe physical and psychological torture. Hamdan called for urgent global efforts to halt these violations and hold Israel accountable.
Israeli torture of Palestinians
Last month, three Israeli whistleblowers working at the Sde Teiman torture camp, a "holding" site for Palestinians abducted during "Israel's" invasion of Gaza, have come forward with testimonies of systemic abuses by the military, including prisoners being restrained, blindfolded, and forced to wear diapers, CNN reported.
The whistleblowers described the grim conditions that Palestinian detainees face in Sde Teiman, stating that they were not allowed to move, talk, or even peek under their blindfolds.
"We were told they were not allowed to move. They should sit upright. They’re not allowed to talk. Not allowed to peek under their blindfold," the whistleblowers told CNN.
Guards were instructed to enforce silence using Arabic commands like "uskot" (shut up: اسكت) and to identify and punish individuals labeled as "problematic".
They described "a routine search when the guards would unleash large dogs on sleeping detainees, lobbing a sound grenade at the enclosure as troops barged in."
Located approximately 18 miles from the Gaza separation fence, the facility is said to be divided into two sections: enclosures where around 70 Palestinian detainees from Gaza are subjected to extreme physical restraint and a field hospital where injured detainees are immobilized, diapered, and fed through straws.
"They stripped them down of anything that resembles human beings," they said.
Not for intelligence gathering
According to the whistleblowers, the beatings inflicted upon detainees were said to be done out of spite and not intended for intelligence gathering.
"[The beatings] were not done to gather intelligence. They were done out of revenge," one of the whistleblowers said.
One whistleblower recounted witnessing an amputation performed on a man who had sustained injuries caused by the constant zip-tying of his wrists.
At the time, Hamas made it clear that the systematic assault on prisoners and detainees "will not weaken their resolve," reiterating that the Resistance is committed to their liberation, a statement read.
It pointed out that the reported abuse and torture of prisoners and detainees indicate that the Israeli occupation government adopts a policy of deliberate attacks against them, motivated by punishment and revenge.
Hamas emphasized that the Palestinian people "will not leave their prisoners and detainees to fall victim to the brutality of the Nazi-like occupation," stressing that the Resistance remains committed to achieving their imminent freedom.
The movement called on the masses of the Palestinian people, their factions, and youths to boost their revolutionary and resistant actions in support of the prisoners by all means.
Elsewhere, Hamas warned the "fascist Israeli government" against continuing with its criminal policy and held it fully responsible for the well-being of every prisoner and detainee.
