On Tuesday, Israeli daily “Haaretz” reported that the Israeli military police revealed that the deaths of two Palestinians from the Gaza Strip in March were a result of Israeli soldiers beating them after their abduction.
The two Palestinians were taken to the Sde Teman detention facility near Beersheba (Be’er As-Sabe’), contrary to the soldiers’ claims that the deaths were due to road conditions.
According to Haaretz, the Israeli army detained the two Palestinians on suspicion of being with the Palestinian resistance.
The detainees were handcuffed and transported alive in a truck from the Khan Younis area in southern Gaza to the Israeli detention facility. However, upon arrival, it was allegedly discovered that they had died.
The military police said it gathered evidence contradicting the soldiers’ claims that the victims were injured during transportation and stated that there are suspicions that they were physically assaulted in multiple areas of their bodies, with one sustaining a head injury.
The police probe has involved questioning several soldiers, although no arrests have been made, unlike in 33 other cases where residents of Gaza died after being arrested and transferred to Israel during the war, according to the report.
The military police stated that they are awaiting the autopsy report on the victims’ bodies before determining the next steps in the investigation.
Amidst international criticism of Israel for failing to hold its soldiers accountable for War Crimes in Gaza, the military police claimed they have been investigating 35 cases of Palestinian deaths following arrests in the Strip.
The Israeli military prosecutor, Yifat Tomer-Yerushalmi, mentioned that the Israeli army is “conducting a total of 70 investigations.”
Haaretz reported that, aside from the two Palestinians who were killed on their way to the Sde Teman detention facility, there are suspicions that two other Palestinians died after being abducted due to health conditions that worsened while in detention.
Since October 7, 2023, the Israeli occupation army has transferred approximately 2000 Palestinian detainees from the Gaza Strip to the Sde Teman base, which has been converted into a detention facility lacking proper conditions for detention, and medical treatment.
Haaretz mentioned that the Israeli Supreme Court is set to review petitions next week regarding the inhumane detention conditions at Sde Teman, where detainees are kept in cages, blindfolded, and handcuffed at all times.
An Israeli medical source who visited the detention facility described the health situation there as extremely disastrous, with very difficult conditions conducive to the spread of diseases.
Horrific scenes…
The occupation documents its humiliation and dehumanization of Palestinian prisoners and detainees from the Gaza Strip. pic.twitter.com/M35b9O27Wj
— 🇧🇩🔻 Ujala/নিশিথিনী | সব নিপীড়িত মানুষের মুক্তি (@shimmeringolds) February 18, 2024
The United Nations has urged Israel to investigate serious allegations of torture and severe mistreatment of detainees in detention facilities and prisons, following reports from the Israeli human rights organization, The Committee Against Torture in Israel.
Another medical source reported witnessing several cases of “sudden death” among Palestinians in Israeli prisons and detention facilities, with no clear explanation for these incidents.
One of the deceased was Ezzeddin al-Banna, a 40-year-old man from Gaza who was abducted last February and was using a wheelchair before his death at the Ofer detention center.
The medical expert expressed astonishment at the rapid deterioration of Al-Banna’s health condition after reviewing the autopsy report, despite living with a disability for 18 years, without receiving adequate care.
Since October 7, a series of violations against the detainees, including torture, and medical malpractices have resulted in the deaths of 18 detainees, whose identities have been disclosed by the Prisoners and Ex-Detainees’ Affairs Authority and the Palestinian Prisoners’ Society (PPS).
The occupation authorities continue the practice of “enforced disappearance” against Gaza detainees.
Despite efforts by prisoners’ organizations and human rights groups, the exact number of those detained in Gaza remains unknown, estimated to be in the thousands.
The Israeli occupation authorities have consistently refused to provide information on the detainees’ exact number, their whereabouts and health status.
Legal teams are still denied access to Gaza detainees for visits or communication, leaving institutions with limited information obtained from released prisoners.
The testimonies of former Gaza detainees, along with visible signs of torture on their bodies, highlight the extent of the crimes and brutality committed by the occupation forces.
Some detainees have lost their lives due to torture and medical negligence, with their identities and the conditions of their detention still undisclosed by the occupation authorities.
Reports have even surfaced indicating the execution of detainees and the amputation of limbs of sick and injured prisoners in a facility linked to the Sde Teman camp.
Gaza detainees were subjected to all different forms of torture, and continuous restrictions over time, in addition to the policy of starvation, detention in conditions degrading human dignity, continuous humiliation and attacks, threats of death, in addition to sexual assaults, and the policy of stripping male and female detainees of their clothes.
At the beginning of last April, the Israeli Prisons Administration announced the detention of 849 detainees whom it classified as “unlawful combatants.” This figure does not include Gaza detainees held in camps.
In addition to this figure, there are (24) children from Gaza in “Megiddo” prison and a group of female detainees in “Damoun” prison, these data also do not include all children or women abducted by the army from Gaza.
