Gaza Herald – Abdullah Qandil, director of the Waed Association for Prisoners, said that this year’s Palestinian Prisoners’ Day carries a different significance, reflecting an extremely dangerous phase faced by detainees inside Israeli prisons.
In a statement to Gaza Herald, Qandil stressed that the day is no longer merely a symbolic occasion but a moment to underscore that what prisoners are facing constitutes a systematic policy requiring serious action.
He affirmed that the prisoners’ issue will remain central to Palestinian national consciousness and that support for them will continue despite escalating violations.
Qandil called for concrete action to protect prisoners and hold Israel accountable for its ongoing violations, particularly in light of recently approved legislation allowing the implementation of the death penalty against detainees.
Palestinians mark Palestinian Prisoners’ Day annually on April 17, a national occasion established in 1974, during which solidarity activities are renewed amid rising prisoner numbers and deteriorating humanitarian conditions.
Qandil explained that conditions inside prisons have significantly worsened over the past two years, with increasing restrictions forming part of a systematic policy aimed at tightening control over prisoners’ daily lives.
He noted that prison authorities have escalated measures by restricting movement within sections, limiting communication, denying family visits, reducing food provisions, expanding the use of solitary confinement, and increasing the use of force.
According to prisoners’ rights organizations, the number of Palestinian detainees in Israeli prisons has exceeded 9,600, including 84 women and around 350 children, most of whom are held in Megiddo and Ofer prisons.
Qandil also highlighted that violations have intensified, particularly against detainees from Gaza, with approximately 1,250 held under the classification of “unlawful combatants” in conditions lacking oversight. He reported documented cases of physical and psychological torture, deprivation of basic needs, and serious abuses.
He further pointed to documented “grave violations of a sexual nature reaching the level of rape,” along with repeated acts of humiliation and abuse, describing the situation as an unprecedented level of violations and a clear breach of international laws and conventions governing the treatment of detainees.
