Knesset Member Ofer Cassif Visits Negev Prisons, Calls for Red Cross Investigation

Knesset Member Ofer Cassif, representing the Hadash-Ta'al party, visited the Negev region's Janot prison complex, which houses Nafha and Ramon prisons, on Wednesday. The visit aimed to inspect the conditions of Palestinian prisoners and included a meeting with the officer in charge of the facility. This marks the first such visit by a Knesset member after repeated denials of similar requests, following persistent efforts and threats of legal action to uphold parliamentary oversight of prisons.

During the visit, Cassif was reportedly prevented from directly observing prisoner conditions. The officer in charge denied allegations of harsh detention circumstances, including torture, poor health conditions, and starvation, despite testimonies from lawyers and human rights organizations, as well as the physical and psychological state of some released Palestinian prisoners.

Cassif stated that the officer acknowledged severe overcrowding, leading many prisoners to sleep on the floor. "I hope the International Committee of the Red Cross will investigate and monitor the detention conditions themselves and reveal all the facts to the world," Cassif said. "For my part, I will continue to fight for the rights of all prisoners."

In a related development, human rights advocate Khaled Mahajna reported on X that International Committee of the Red Cross delegates entered an Israeli military camp holding Palestinian and possibly other Arab prisoners, after a three-year ban. However, Mahajna noted the delegates did not meet or hear testimony from any prisoners. He questioned why the Red Cross was not permitted to interview prisoners and assess their conditions, citing ongoing reports of starvation, illness, abuse, oppression, and death in recent years.