Blood behind bars: How Israeli jails have turned into slaughter houses for Palestinians

By Alireza Akbari

On Thursday, it was revealed that 78-year-old Ahmed Abdul Marjan Al-Aqqad had been tortured to death in an Israeli prison, the fifth Palestinian to meet such fate in less than a week.

Tragically, there was no one to mourn for him. All his family members, including all children, have already been killed in the Israeli genocidal war against Palestinians in the Gaza Strip. 

The septuagenarian was abducted by the Israeli regime forces from his home in the Qarara area, east of Khan Yunis city in the southern Gaza Strip in March 2024 without any charges.

Recent data from Palestinian prisoner rights institutions reveals that over 9,500 Palestinians are currently held in Israeli prisons, of which more than 70 have been tortured to death in jails.

The rising number of Palestinian detainees and those tortured to death, along with extended detention of Palestinians, the outbreak of infectious diseases among prisoners, and the prevention of legal visits point to the catastrophic situation in Israeli prisons.

Three days before Al-Aqqad's death, Hussein Saber Abu Obeida was tortured to death by Israeli soldiers. A resident of the Al-Qatatwa camp in Khan Younis, Abu Obeida was the fourth Palestinian to fall victim to brutal Israeli torture within the past week.

The photo of Abu Obeida, with a broad smile on his face, became a haunting symbol on social media networks, causing many to ask how many more Palestinians, like Abu Obeida, have been tortured to death—and how many more might follow.

"Why haven't we heard any condemnations of Israel's execution of around 70 Palestinian hostages in its prisons in recent months," questioned EuroMed Human Rights Monitor chairman Ramy Abdu in a post on X, formerly known as Twitter.

Before Abu Obeida, Ayman Rajeh Abed, 58, was also tortured to death in an Israeli prison, with clear marks of abuse and torture on his body.

“There were signs of beatings and torture on his body,” confirmed the director of Jenin Government Hospital, noting "visible marks of handcuffs on his hands."

While Israeli authorities claimed that Abed died of a "cardiac event," his family insisted he had no prior health issues. Abed was detained in Kafr Dan, Jenin, occupied West Bank.

Arafat Al-Khawaja, a Palestinian from Al-Shati camp in Khan Yunis, southern Gaza, was the third Palestinian detainee to succumb to Israeli torture during the last week.

The family of Al-Khawaja announced on Sunday that he had died as a result of torture at the notorious Israeli Sde Teiman detention center.

Al-Khawaja’s custodial murder raised the total number of Palestinian detainees who have died in Israeli jails since 1967 to 262, according to the Palestinian Information Center.

The actual number, according to activists, is much higher.

Just a day before Al-Khwaja’s murder, the family of 65-year-old Nasr Al-Din Ziyara from Gaza City mourned his death, caused by abuse and torture at Ramla Prison.

The total number of Palestinians killed in Israeli prisons since October 7, who have been identified, has now reached 28, according to some Palestinian rights groups.

However, Euro-Med says the number of Palestinians killed in Israeli jails totals more than 70.

Torture in Israel's prisons and detention centers has been widespread and systematic, including rape, sexual assault, beatings, sleep deprivation, and starvation, according to various reports.

A recent poll by the “Israeli Institute for National Security Studies” found that 65% of Israeli settlers support the right to sexually assault Palestinian prisoners.

Palestinians who spent years in Israeli prisons have also spoken out about the lasting psychological and physical effects of the torture they endured.

"The physical pain will eventually pass, but the wounds to the soul are indelible," said Amer Abu Hlel, 30, who was released from an Israeli prison on April 15.

Following the murder of Nasr Al-Din Ziyara on Saturday, the Commission of Detainees and Ex-Detainees Affairs (CDA) and the Palestinian Prisoners Club (PPC) issued a joint statement, saying Ziyara was "one of dozens" of Gaza prisoners who died due to "systematic torture."

"He had burns on the lower part of his body and was unable to walk," the statement noted, citing eyewitness accounts from Al-Ramla prison.

Here is a list of Palestinians tortured to death in Israeli prisons since October 2023. These are those who were identified. Many more remain unidentified.  

• Ahmed Abdul Marjan Al-Aqqad (72)

Ahmed Abdul Marjan Al_Aqqad was killed in an Israeli prison months after being abducted from his home in Qarara, east of Khan Younis city in the southern Gaza Strip.

• Hussein Saber Abu Obeida (23)

Abu Obeida was tortured and abused in an Israeli prison which eventually led to his custodial murder. He belonged to the Al-Qatatwa camp in Khan Younis city, southern Gaza Strip.

• Ayman Rajeh Abed (58)

Rajeh Abed was taken hostage by the Israeli military from his home in Kafr Dan in the city of Jenin, occupied West Bank, and beaten, tortured, and finally executed. Rights groups said, "visible marks of handcuffs were found on his hands, and signs of beating and torture were evident on his body."

• Arafat Al-Khawaja (22)

Arafat Al-Khawaja was tortured to death in the Israeli regime's Sde Teman concentration camp. His family said the Red Cross informed them that he was tortured to death in February.

• Nasr El-Din Ziyara (64)

Nasr El-Din Ziyara from Gaza City was murdered by the Israeli forces in Ramla prison.

• Zahir Tahseen Raddad (19)

Zahir Tahseen Raddad from the Saida neighborhood in Tulkarem, occupied West Bank, was shot and used as a human shield by Israeli forces, on August 25.

• Kifah Dabaya (34)

Kifat Dabaya from Kafr Dan, Jenin, occupied West Bank, died from his wounds resulting from the Israeli military's torture inside their custody in August.

• Omar Abdulaziz Junaid (26)

Omar Abdulaziz Junaid from the town of Jabalia, north of Gaza City, succumbed to his injuries on August 1 after severe torture during interrogation in Israeli custody.

• Islam Al-Sarsawi (42)

Islam Al-Sarsawi (42) from Al-Shuja'iyya town, Gaza, was tortured to death in Israeli Sde Teiman prison. His custodial murder was confirmed on August 2.

• Mustafa Abu Ora (63)

Mustafa Abu Ora, a senior Hamas leader from Aqaba, Tubas, occupied West Bank, died after prolonged medical neglect in Israeli prisons. 

• Ismail Abdelbari Khader (33)

Ismail Abdelbari Khader died in Israeli custody and his body was handed over to his family on May 2. His custodial murder was described as part of the “systematic targeting” of Gaza’s health workers.

• Dr. Adnan Ahmed Al-Barsh (50)

Adnan Ahmed Al_Barsh, the head of the orthopedics department at the Al-Shifa hospital, Gaza, was tortured to death in Israeli custody on April 19.

• Abdul Rahim Amer (59)

Abdul Rahim Amer, a Palestinian man from Qalqilya, a city in the occupied West Bank, was tortured to death in Hadarim Prison on April 13.

• Walid Daqqah (63)

Walid Daqqah, a Palestinian writer from Baqa Al-Gharbiya, occupied Palestinian territories, died on April 7 due to medical negligence in Israeli custody.

• Juma Abu Ghneimeh (26)

Juma Abu Ghneimeh, a Palestinian from Bir Al-Sabi’, Naqab, occupied Palestinian territories, was found unconscious in Israeli custody on March 16 and was eventually declared.

• Ahmed Rizq Qudeih (78)

Ahmed Rizq Qudeih from Khuza’a, Khan Younis city, southern Gaza Strip, was tortured to death on March 2 in an Israeli detention camp.

• Asif Abdul Mua'ti Muhammad Al-Rifai (22)

Asif Abdul Mua'ti Muhammad Al-Rifai, a 22-year-old from Kafr Ain, Ramallah, occupied West Bank, succumbed to his injuries on February 29 due to medical neglect in Israeli custody.

• Izz El-Din Ziad Abdul Banna (40)

Izz El-Din Ziad Abdul Bannam, a Palestinian from Al-Sabra, Gaza City, was tortured to death in an Israeli prison on February 23.

• Khaled Shaweesh (53)

Khaled Shaweesh, imprisoned since 2007 from Al-Fara'a Camp in Tubas, occupied West Bank, was tortured to death in Nafha prison on February 21.

• Mohammed Tariq Abu Sneineh (16)

Mohammed Tariq Abu Sneineh from Al-Eizariya, Abu Sneineh, was shot by Israeli forces and succumbed to his injuries in Hadassah Hospital on February 18, while still under detention.

• Mohammed Ahmed Rateb Al-Sabbar (21)

Mohammed Ahmed Rateb Al-Sabbar from Al-Thahiriya, Al-Khalil, occupied West Bank, was tortured to death in Ofer prison on February 8 due to deliberate medical negligence.

• Abdulrahman Al-Bahsh (23)

Abdulrahman Al-Bahsh from Nablus city in the occupied West Bank was tortured to death in Megiddo prison on January 1, after languishing in prison since May 31, 2022.

• Thaer Sameeh Abu Asab (38)

Thaer Sameeh Abu Asab from Qalqilya in the occupied West Bank was tortured to death in Naqab desert prison on November 18.

• Abdulrahman Ahmad Mohammed Mer'i (33)

Abdulrahman Ahmad Mohammed Mer'i from Qarawat Bani Hassan, Salfit, was subjected to a premeditated assassination in Megiddo prison on November 13.

• Majed Ahmed Zaqoul (32)

Majed Ahmed Zaqoul, a Gaza-based worker was tortured to death in Ofer prison on November 6, becoming the 240th Palestinian prisoner to die in Israeli custody since 1967.

• Arafat Hamdan (25)

Arafat Hamdan, a Palestinian from Ramallah, occupied West Bank, was tortured to death in Ofer prison on October 24. The Prisoners’ Affairs Commission and Prisoners’ Club described his death as part of a "systematic assassination" of Palestinian prisoners.

• Sheikh Omar Daraghmeh (58)

Sheikh Omar Daraghmeh, a Hamas leader from Tubas, occupied West Bank, was tortured to death in Megiddo prison on October 23, amid a surge in arrests and prisoner abuse by Israeli authorities.

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