Dozens of Gazans Die in Israeli Detention

At least 27 Palestinian detainees from the Gaza Strip have died in Israeli custody since the start of the war in October. 

According to figures cited by Hebrew daily Haaretz on 7 March, they died at the Sde Teiman and Anatot detention centers in Israel “or during questioning in Israeli territory.” 

The Israeli army’s spokesperson’s office said its military police has opened investigations into the deaths. The army has not given any details on how the Palestinian detainees lost their lives and claimed that some of them suffered from previous health issues or were injured during the war. 

Tel Aviv has been holding Gazan prisoners in prison camps inside Israel since the war began. 

A recently amended law allows detainees to be held for up to 75 days without seeing a judge. 

The Hebrew outlet says some have been returned to Gaza, including most of the Gazans who had permits to work in Israel before the war. 

However, at least one of the Gazans previously employed in Israel, “a diabetic, died there, after not receiving medical treatment,” a source told Haaretz. 

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The outlet had previously reported in December that Palestinian detainees in the Sde Teiman detention center were blindfolded and handcuffed during the day. It said many were beaten and punished, in line with the testimonies made by Gazans who later returned to the strip. 

The army said at the time that it would investigate the matter. 

Earlier this week, a UNRWA report said previously detained Gazans revealed that they were beaten, sexually assaulted, and denied medical attention and legal support during their detention. 

The report said the detainees included males and females, including children as young as six and elderly as old as 82.

Israel’s military has claimed that any detainee with “no connection to terrorist operations” is released back to Gaza. There has been no way to verify this. 

In early December, images circulating social media showed dozens of Palestinian detainees stripped down to their underwear and blindfolded on the streets of Gaza. 

At least 100 Palestinian men detained by Israeli forces have been stripped to their underwear, blindfolded, and made to kneel on a street in northern Gaza, confirmed by the Israeli army. #IsraelIsATerroristState pic.twitter.com/lEyrIps5zr

— Ahmed Isse (@AmaaneIsse) December 8, 2023

Israel has a long history of torturing Palestinians and other Arabs, most notoriously at a secret prison known as Facility 1391.

Since 1967, Israel has detained over one million Palestinians, including tens of thousands of children, according to the UN.