Scores of testimonies from recently released prisoners point to torture and abuse inside Israeli detention camps and prisons.
Israel has arrested at least 30 Palestinian lawyers since October 7, according to the Commission for Detainees’ Affairs and the Palestinian Prisoner’s Society.
This includes two female lawyers, the organizations said in a joint statement to mark Palestinian Lawyers Day.
They said law professionals have “historically” been targeted by Israeli authorities but that it has escalated in the recent past, particularly since the case of alleged genocide was brought against Tel Aviv in the International Court of Justice (ICJ).
The organizations said that the arrests of lawyers were seen as a “crackdown” on their profession, with legal teams working in human rights institutions, “especially those who visit and represent detainees” being subjected to “many obstructions” since Israel’s genocidal war on Gaza began.
“Furthermore, the occupation authorities imposed a series of restrictions on lawyers working in military courts, which significantly affected their ability to continue their work to follow up on detainee cases,” the statement said.
‘Forcibly Disappeared’ – Around 1,000 Palestinian Workers Missing in Israel
‘Strict Conditions’
The organizations highlighted the “crime of enforced disappearance” amongst “the majority” of Gaza detainees, “by preventing legal teams and the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) from communicating with them.”
They noted that a few lawyers were permitted to visit the detainees “under strict conditions” as the legal representatives were “subjected to thorough searches and prevented from bringing any note to detainees.”
In this context, the Commission and the Prisoner’s Society confirm the crucial role played by Palestinian lawyers, especially during the war” amid “the unprecedented level of crimes.”
The organizations called for the protection of legal teams and support from international human rights organizations for them to be “able to perform their vital and important duties at all levels.”
Scores of testimonies from recently released prisoners point to torture and abuse inside Israeli detention camps and prisons.
‘Worse than Abu Ghraib’ – This is How Israel Tortures Its Palestinian Hostages
Ongoing Genocide
Currently on trial before the International Court of Justice for genocide against Palestinians, Israel has been waging a devastating war on Gaza since October 7.
According to Gaza’s Ministry of Health, 38,295 Palestinians have been killed, and 88,241 wounded. Moreover, at least 11,000 people are unaccounted for, presumed dead under the rubble of their homes throughout the Strip.
Israel says that 1,200 soldiers and civilians were killed during the Al-Aqsa Flood Operation on October 7. Israeli media published reports suggesting that many Israelis were killed on that day by ‘friendly fire’.
GAZA LIVE BLOG: Iran Reaffirms Support | Gallant to Be Removed | Massacres in Rafah, Rimal – Day 279
Palestinian and international organizations say that the majority of those killed and wounded are women and children.
The Israeli war has resulted in an acute famine, mostly in northern Gaza, resulting in the death of many Palestinians, mostly children.
The Israeli aggression has also resulted in the forceful displacement of nearly two million people from all over the Gaza Strip, with the vast majority of the displaced forced into the densely crowded southern city of Rafah near the border with Egypt – in what has become Palestine’s largest mass exodus since the 1948 Nakba.
Later in the war, hundreds of thousands of Palestinians began moving from the south to central Gaza in a constant search for safety.
(The Palestine Chronicle)
Narcissist Agitators Zionizing Israel Shamelessly.