RAMALLAH (Dispatches) -- A Palestinian advocacy group says Israeli prisons have effectively become “torture grounds” after authorities introduced new types of weapons to be used against detainees.
Abdullah al-Zaghari, head of the Palestinian Prisoner Society, said the so-called Israel prison service has begun equipping prison guards with stun guns and a new type of rubber bullet.
He warned that the move marks “a systematic escalation in repression” and places the lives of Palestinian detainees at increasing risk.
“These measures violate international law and human rights standards. Testimonies from inside prisons already confirm that these weapons are being used during raids inside detention wards,” al-Zaghari said. He added that Palestinian detainees are being treated as a “testing ground” for new weaponry.
The group said more than 19,000 Palestinians have been detained across the occupied West Bank, including Al-Quds since Israel launched its war on Gaza on October 7, 2023. Among those detained are at least 585 women and 1,550 children. It added that 77 detainees have died in Israeli custody during this period, including 46 from Gaza.
The Palestinian resistance group Hamas also condemned the introduction of new weapons in Israeli prisons, calling it a “dangerous and systematic escalation” against defenseless detainees.
In a statement, Hamas described the move as part of a “fascist, retaliatory policy” aimed at causing severe physical and psychological harm to prisoners, warning it could amount to a slow form of execution.
Hamas said Israel bears full responsibility for the safety of all Palestinian detainees and urged international human rights bodies to act immediately to stop what it described as crimes inside Israeli prisons.
Human rights organizations have long said Palestinian detainees face mistreatment, including denial of medical care, food deprivation, and psychological abuse.
Since the start of the Gaza war, at least 1,018 Palestinians have been killed and more than 7,000 injured in the West Bank by Israeli forces and settlers, according to the Palestinian Health Ministry.
In July, the International Court of Justice issued a legal opinion declaring Israel’s occupation of Palestinian territories, including Al-Quds, illegal, and called for the evacuation of all settlements.