Palestinian political prisoners speak out about PHYSICAL and PSYCHOLOGICAL ABUSE they endured at the hands of Israeli captors

 Palestinian political prisoners recently freed from illegal Israeli detention have spoken up about the horrifying conditions they have endured at the hands of their captors.

In December 2023, freed Palestinian political prisoners reported physical and psychological abuse as well as deprivation of essentials such as food, water, medical care and proper sleeping arrangements.

"There are no laws. Everything is permitted. I was led to the investigation handcuffed and blindfolded; I was threatened with being burned; I was explicitly threatened with rape and with deportation to the Gaza Strip," said journalist and mother of five children Lama Khater, one of the Palestinian captives freed in December.

Moreover, the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) accused Israel of abusing Palestinian prisoners in detention through physical assaults, dog attacks, sleep deprivation and sexual violence.

"The beatings included blunt force trauma to the head, shoulders, kidneys, neck, back and legs with metal bars and the butts of guns and boots, in some cases resulting in broken ribs, separated shoulders and lasting injuries. According to individuals released from detention, ill-treatment was used in attempts to extract information or confessions, to intimidate and humiliate and to punish,” the report said.

The disturbing testimonies come from a group of detainees, including males, females, children as young as six and elderlies up to 82 years old.

All the abuse has resulted in the deaths of at least 27 Palestinian detainees that were unjustly imprisonedby the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) following the onset of the war in Gaza. Several reports claim that the deaths of these dozens of Palestinians occurred at the Sde Teiman and Anatot detention centers in Israel "or during questioning in Israeli territory."

"Multiple individuals released from detention reported deaths of detainees in the military barracks, including injured and sick detainees who were denied medication and medical treatment," the UNRWA report said.

An IDF spokesperson acknowledged the deaths and announced that its military police had investigated the circumstances surrounding each case. However, the army provided no details on the cause of death. They insisted that their actions complied with Israeli and international law and, therefore, rejected the claims of abuse, including sexual abuse and sleep deprivation.

"The mistreatment of detainees during their time in detention or whilst under interrogation violates IDF values, contravenes IDF orders and is therefore absolutely prohibited. These claims are another cynical attempt to create a false equivalency with the systematic use of rape as a weapon of war by Hamas," the IDF said.

Instead, the IDF insists that some detainees had pre-existing health issues or sustained injuries during the war.

IDF has been committing genocide, war crimes and human rights violations against Palestinians since at least 1967

Like its usual narrative, the IDF accused the UNWRA of supporting Hamas, but a separate report from the United Nations in July reveals otherwise.

At that time, the UN Human Rights Council engaged in a dual interactive dialogue session with Francesca Albanese, the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Palestinian territories occupied since 1967.

According to the presentation, Israel has detained approximately one million Palestinians, including tens of thousands of children, since 1967. As of July, 5,000 Palestinians, including 160 children, are held in Israeli prisons, with about 1,100 detainees held without charge or trial. Albanese argued that the occupied Palestinian territory has essentially become an open-air prison, eroding the status of Palestinians as protected persons and constituting international crimes.  

Albanese also highlights the use of detention as a tool to impede the exercise of rights, citing threats, blackmail, assault, medical negligence and the transfer of detainees outside the occupied territories as grave violations of international law.

To date, the IDF has not stopped committing genocide, war crimes and human rights violations against Palestinians.

The latest UNWRA data stated that the IDF reportedly detained approximately 4,000 Palestinians from Gaza in three military facilities within Israel. The report is based on interviews with 100 of the roughly 1,000 individuals who have been released so far.

"Cases of torture, sexual abuse, and psychological trauma have been well documented throughout decades of Israel's occupation of Palestine and detention of its people, yet this has not received a fraction of the media attention afforded to the Israelis imprisoned only two months ago," wrote Robert Inlakesh in his op-ed article titled "Behind the bars: Palestinian and Israeli prisoners" for The Cradle.