Abdallah Tamimi spent a year in Israeli prison under harsh conditions, enduring starvation and abuse—this is his painful testimony, written by Palestine Chronicle’s Tamar Fleishman.
Abdallah Tamimi was released about a month and a half ago after spending a year in prison. Throughout that entire year, his family and friends had no idea why he was imprisoned. Now, Abdallah speaks out, sharing his story—slowly but in great detail.
He remembers every moment— the hunger, the humiliation, the beatings, each meager portion of food, and the missing medical care.
His legs and chest are scarred and bruised, wounds that have not yet healed from the blows dealt by his captors.
Abdallah was detained for writing on social media about the atrocities happening in Gaza. To the authorities, that made him a Hamas sympathizer in their eyes— in the eyes of those who create laws and control the lives of Palestinians.
For the first months, he was held at Ofer Prison, where he went through a mock trial. And I say “mock” because the procedure wasn’t direct— it was conducted via video call, or Zoom, or some other remote system. After that, he was transferred to a prison in the Negev, where he remained until his release.
When Abdallah was finally freed, his family was shocked by his appearance. His mother wept, and his father, who could hardly recognize him, said, “This is not Abdallah.”
He looked so different. When he was arrested, he weighed about 100 kilograms. Now, he weighed only 60 kilograms.
But it was him. Starved and beaten. Immediately after his release, he was taken to a hospital in Ramallah, where he received medical treatment and nutrition under supervision.
I call it starvation. The responsible minister— Kahanist Itamar Ben-Gvir— calls it governance that incarcerates.
I didn’t ask too many questions. The time will come for the full story to be told.
What keeps Abdallah awake at night is the fact that his son, Moustafa (named after his grandfather), underwent surgery four years ago at Hadassah Hospital (inside Israel), where doctors implanted a device next to his ear.
He needs yearly checkups to ensure the device is functioning properly, but now, due to restrictions, his father is unable to enter Israel— and neither can the rest of the family. Moustafa’s hearing is already starting to deteriorate. What will happen to him?
I’ve reached out to Physicians for Human Rights about Moustafa in hopes they can help.
(Translated by Tal Haran)
– As a member of Machsomwatch, Tamar Fleishman documents events at Israeli military checkpoints between Jerusalem and Ramallah. Her reports, photos and videos can be found on the organization’s website: www.machsomwatch.org. She is also a member of the ‘Coalition of Women for Peace’ and a volunteer in ‘Breaking the Silence’. Tamar Fleishman is The Palestine Chronicle correspondent at the Qalandiya checkpoint.
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