Israel is accused of systematic prisoner abuse

Israel is accused of systematic prisoner abuse
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full screen Women in the West Bank hold up pictures of Palestinians imprisoned in Israel. Photo: Nasser Nasser

Thousands of Palestinian prisoners are subjected to systematic abuse and torture in Israeli prisons. This appears in a report by the Israeli human rights group B’Tselem.

In the report, 55 former prisoners testify about “inhumane conditions” and that the prisons were used as “actual torture camps”.

The report concerns the time after Hamas’ terrorist attack on Israel on October 7, which triggered the ongoing war in Gaza.

The former prisoners describe frequent acts of gross, arbitrary violence, sexual abuse, humiliation, deliberate starvation and sleep deprivation, according to the report.

Israel’s prison authorities deny the accusations and consider them baseless. According to the authority, all prisoners are “held legally and their fundamental rights are fully provided for”.

Even Israel’s military says that any type of abuse against prisoners is illegal and against the military’s guidelines.

B’Tselem’s report is published a week after the UN human rights body also accused Israel of subjecting prisoners to torture-like practices.

According to the human rights group, Israeli prisons and detention centers have almost doubled to over 9,600 since before the war.

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