Israel has released seven Palestinian prisoners while thousands more are still being held in Israeli jails and detention centers without any charges or trial.
There were jubilation and tears of joy among their families and relatives as released prisoners from the besieged Gaza Strip were received on Tuesday, a Press TV correspondent reported.
“We had been waiting since last Thursday because Israel kept him for seven more days. I could not sleep while I was waiting for his release. My mother died before she could see him,” a prisoner’s sister said as her voice muffled by tears.
The release of the seven prisoners comes as the world remains largely silent about thousands of Palestinian prisoners who are denied family visits and have restricted access to basic necessities such as clothing and/or money.
“The Red Cross should know that there are only working as mail carriers for Palestinian prisoners. They should go to ram the prison hospitals to see how Israel refuses to offer even basic medical services to Palestinian prisoners,” former Palestinian inmate, Hesham Attallah, told Press TV in Gaza City.
More than 11,500 Palestinians are currently held in Israeli prisons under harsh conditions, according to Palestinian sources. A total of 270 of the detainees are under the age of 18 years and 33 of them are women.
Palestinian groups have long insisted that the prisoners are subjected to various kinds of mistreatment and torture in Israeli detention facilities and are often deprived of visits by their family.
The Palestinian Ministry of Prisoners states that almost half of the 315 prisoners arrested before the 1993 Oslo Agreement have been in Israeli jails for more than 20 years.
There are more than 1,500 illness cases among prisoners in Israeli jails, including heart problems, kidney failures, and cancer. Israeli authorities deprive these ailing prisoners of adequate medical care and often medication is limited to painkillers alone.
There are also some prisoners that are kept in solitary confinement, which often leads to psychological problems. Palestinian sources also indicate that about 14 prisoners have been subjected to solitary confinement for more than five years.
(Press TV)
