Palestinians released from Israeli prisons claim mistreatment

After the Hamas strikes on Israel on October 7, Palestinian detainees released from Israeli prisons claim that in the weeks that followed, guards mistreated them and subjected them to collective punishment.

They’ve talked about being beaten with sticks, having dogs set on them while they’re muzzled, and having their food, clothes, and blankets taken away.

According to a female prisoner, she was subjected to threats of rape and was twice subjected to tear gas attacks by guards within her cell.

Six people were interviewed by bustlingnews.com, and all of them claimed to have been beaten before being released from custody.

According to the Palestinian Prisoners Society, some guards are accused of peeing on detainees who were handcuffed. In the last seven weeks, six detainees have passed away while in Israeli captivity.

Israel claims that every prisoner is housed in accordance with the law.

Among those freed by Israel this week in return for Israeli women and children held captive by Hamas in Gaza was Mohammed Nazzal, eighteen.

He claims he has been detained in Nafha Prison without being charged since August and that he is unaware of the reason for his arrest.

Mohammed welcomed me to his house, which is located north of the occupied West Bank in the settlement of Qabatiya, close to Jenin, along a narrow lane.

A relative walked the guests around with a flask of coffee and a towering tower of little paper cups as the smoke from a dozen cigarettes filled the family reception room at the top of the ancient house.

Seated between rows of his male relatives, Mohammed had both of his hands firmly wrapped and held stiffly in front of him like a boxer, with just the tips of his thumbs showing.

He claims that ten days prior, Israeli jail officers entered his cell brandishing a microphone and speaker in an attempt to incite the inmates by calling out their names and clapping.

“When they saw we weren’t reacting,” according to him, “they started to beat us.”

The juvenile inmates were placed in front of the senior prisoners when they sorted us. After taking me, they began to beat me. They were attempting to break my hands and legs as I was defending my head.”

Mohammed’s family presented us with X-rays and medical papers from Palestinian doctors who checked him in Ramallah following his release on Monday.

Two UK doctors who saw the X-ray images verified that they revealed fractures in both hands. Mohammed was not surprised.

He tells me, “I was in a lot of pain in the beginning.” “After some time, I realized they were defective and ceased utilizing them. I reserved their use for bathroom breaks.”

He claims the other inmates gave him assistance with eating, drinking, and using the restroom, and he refrained from asking the guards for medical attention out of concern that he would be beaten again.

Mohammed’s account has been refuted by the Israel Prison Service, which claims that Mohammed was checked out by a doctor prior to being released from custody and that no health issues were found.

In addition, the prison service disclosed a video purporting to refute the adolescent’s allegations, showing him getting out of jail and getting on a Red Cross bus prior to his release.

Although they are out of view for the majority of the video, the adolescent’s unbandaged hands appear to be dangling by his sides throughout the film, even as he gets onto the bus.

Mohammed informed us that he got his first medical care on that Red Cross bus.

The day he returned home, a medical report from a Ramallah hospital warned that if his fractures did not heal on their own, a plate could need to be placed.

To verify Mohammed’s account, we contacted the Red Cross. In a statement, they stated: “If we have any concerns regarding the detainees’ medical conditions, we speak with the detaining authorities directly. We don’t discuss specific incidents in public because of this discourse.”

Mohammed claims that following the October 7th Hamas assaults, Israeli jail guard behavior altered.

He claims that the guards struck them with sticks and kicked them. He also claims that one of the soldiers stepped on his face.

He goes on, “They brought their dogs in.” “They let the dogs attack us and then they started beating us.”

“They dumped our meals on the floor and removed our clothes, pillows, and beds. People were frightened.”

He displays to me the bruises on his shoulder and back that he claims came from these beatings.

“The dog attacking me wore a muzzle with very sharp edges — his muzzle and claws left marks all over my body,” he informs me.

He claims that he was beaten like this twice at Megiddo Prison and more times than he could remember at Nafha Prison.

Speaking with other Palestinian detainees, we learned of a similar change that occurred inside Israel’s prisons following the Hamas strikes. These prisoners described it as “revenge” against other Palestinian prisoners for the crimes of Hamas.

Abdullah al-Zaghary, the head of the Palestinian inmates Society, informed us that he had heard reports of guards peeing on inmates who were handcuffed and that other detainees had seen their cellmates being severely beaten on their faces and bodies.

We requested an answer from the Israel Prison Service about these claims. They said that every prisoner had all the fundamental rights required by law and was housed in accordance with the law.

The statement said, “We are not aware of the claims you described.” “Nonetheless, prisoners and detainees have the right to file a complaint that will be fully examined by official authorities.”

Following her release from jail earlier this week, Lama Khater took to social media to post a video in which she claimed that an intelligence officer had “explicitly threatened her with rape” as soon as she was arrested in late October.

“I was blindfolded and in handcuffs,” she said to the interviewer on camera. They made threats on me to rape. It seemed obvious that the intention was to frighten me.”

Israel claimed that the prisoner herself had refuted the allegations made by her attorney. It stated that an inciting complaint had been filed by the jail service.

However, Lama Khater informed us over the phone that tear gas had been used against inmates in their dormitory at Damon Prison and that she had received threats of rape from other female inmates.

Six Palestinians have died in custody since the October 7 attacks, according to the Palestinian Prisoners Society, which reports a dramatic increase in these deaths.

Israel replied that four convicts had passed away on four separate dates in the previous weeks and that the prison service was unaware of the causes of death, but it did not explicitly answer our inquiry concerning this.

Mohammed Nazzal of Qabatiya village said that he still experiences agony in his hands, particularly at night.

The previous adolescent he knew, according to his brother Mutaz, had not been released from prison.

“This is not the Mohammed we know,” he stated. “He had courage and bravery. He is now terrified and his heart is broken.”

He added that the Israeli army had conducted an operation the night before in the 4 km (2.5 mi) distant city of Jenin: “You could see how scared he was.”