Palestinian Detainee Organizations Report Systematic Abuses Against 90+ Women in Israeli Prisons

Palestinian prisoner advocacy groups reported on Monday that Israeli authorities are holding over 90 Palestinian women in prisons and detention centers, where they face systematic abuses and violations. These conditions have reportedly worsened since the start of the "genocide war," with widespread scabies infections among detainees due to a lack of medical care and hygiene supplies. The organizations stated that violations include physical and psychological torture, starvation, denial of medical treatment, and sexual assault, such as strip searches, harassment, and threats of rape. They also cited verbal abuse, repeated suppression operations, beatings, and humiliation.

According to the groups' statement, issued on Palestinian Women's National Day, scabies has caused daily suffering, including itching, pain, and sleep disturbances. Testimonies indicate some detainees experience limb spasms. The organizations accused the Israeli prison administration of denying the disease's spread and refusing to provide necessary treatment. They noted that human rights organizations have documented over 810 arrests of Palestinian women since October 7, 2023, in the West Bank, including Jerusalem, and within Israel, with the most recent being Marah Al-Za'aqiq arrested in Hebron. Precise figures for women detained from Gaza are unavailable.

Among the over 90 female detainees are two minors and 22 held under administrative detention. Shatila Abu Ayyada, from Israel, is identified as the longest-serving female detainee. The detained women include those with serious illnesses like cancer, and two pregnant women facing difficult conditions. The groups highlighted the increased use of women as hostages during the war to pressure their relatives, noting arrests of wives and mothers of prisoners and fallen fighters, some over 70 years old. These arrests were accompanied by home destruction, property confiscation, child intimidation, and threats against detainees regarding their detained family members.

Conditions in Hasharon and Damon prisons are described as harsh, with unsanitary cells, strip searches, beatings, and spoiled food. Basic necessities like sanitary pads and clothing are allegedly used as punishment. Family visits are denied, and both group and solitary confinement are imposed, along with lack of ventilation in summer and heating in winter. Detainee Bushra Al-Taweel has been in solitary confinement for nearly two months under harsh conditions, facing repeated assaults and visitation obstacles despite legal calls for her release due to her administrative detention status.

The organizations reported intensified suppression operations against female detainees this year, involving stun grenades, tear gas, police dogs, and humiliating procedures like forced prone positions, beatings, and strip searches, with the operations being filmed. Most detainees are held for alleged "incitement," including expressing opinions on social media, while others are under administrative detention based on secret files without clear charges. The groups emphasized that targeting Palestinian women is part of a broader attack on Palestinian society, asserting that the issue extends beyond numbers to the right of women to freedom, safety, and dignity, demanding accountability for perpetrators and an end to impunity. They called on the international human rights system to take concrete action, pursue war crime perpetrators, and ensure protection for all Palestinian prisoners.