Outcry grows after over 600 Palestinian captives were released as part of the Gaza ceasefire deal. Released captives showed signs of torture, starvation, and severe neglect. [Getty]
Outcry has grown following the release of over 600 Palestinian captives after Hamas handed over the remains of four Israelis as part of the Gaza ceasefire deal.
The released captives showed signs of torture, starvation, and severe medical neglect.
On Thursday, shortly after Israel reported the transfer of the bodies of four Israeli captives, hundreds of Palestinians were freed, though the release of two Palestinian women and 44 children was delayed, with their release expected later that day.
This was the final scheduled prisoner exchange of the first phase of the ceasefire deal between Hamas and Israel.
According to both local and international media reports, several of the released Palestinians were transported to the European Hospital in Khan Younis in southern Gaza due to the severity of their injuries.
Some were also sent to Egypt and the occupied West Bank.
Eyad al-Saudi, a former Palestinian prisoner, whose experience was covered by US news channel Democracy Now, stated: “Praise be to God, we feel great. But the joy is not complete. Why? Because there are young men who are still imprisoned and suffering. The period of captivity was not just being held captive. It was torture, torture beyond description.”
Another former detainee, Alaa al-Bayari, recalled the horrific conditions he faced in Israeli prison.
“We were kept naked, water was thrown on us and then they used electricity,” he told Al Jazeera.
Reports also indicated that some released Palestinians had their limbs amputated or suffered severe injuries due to torture in Israeli detention.
Family members of the freed prisoners were visibly emotional upon seeing their loved ones in such poor condition.
Palestinian media outlets shared distressing footage of the emaciated state of the detainees
One such image showed Thabet Abu Khater, 66, who arrived at Gaza’s European Hospital missing a leg.
Bilal Yassin, 42, a prisoner released after 20 years, told news agency Reuters that he had been subjected to oppression and poor conditions throughout his imprisonment. “Our sacrifices and imprisonment were not in vain,” Yassin said.
“We had confidence in the [Palestinian] resistance.”
The latest evidence prompted outrage as German politician Melanie Schweizer took to social media, accusing her government- an ally of Israel- of being complicit in Israel’s conduct through its political and military support amid its 15-month assault on Gaza.
“I would have never thought to live in such a selective rule of law and double standard dystopian reality in which a country accused of genocide, tortures captives and the German government is completely silent, delivers weapons to it and the designated chancellor invites the president of said country wanted with an international arrest warrant,” she wrote in a post.
Many of those released in the first exchange, as well as some in the subsequent three exchanges, had never been formally charged and were held without trial in Israeli prisons under a practice known as “administrative detention.”
This process has been widely criticised by human rights organisations.
Amnesty International has previously condemned the Israeli law- known as the Unlawful Combatants Law- that gives the Israeli military the power to detain Palestinians from Gaza indefinitely, based solely on suspicion of posing a threat to state security, without presenting evidence to substantiate the claims.
On Wednesday, Physicians for Human Rights Israel (PHRI) released a report detailing the abuse of Palestinian healthcare workers during detention.
Over 150 healthcare workers remain in Israeli custody, and all 24 workers interviewed for the report stated they had not been formally charged or given evidence against them.
Many of the detained workers reported being subjected to threats, beatings, and humiliation while being questioned about captives taken from Israel, tunnels, and Hamas movements.
PHRI denounced Israel’s actions, stating that the use of starvation and torture violates international law.
The first phase of the ceasefire included the exchange of 33 Israeli hostages for nearly 2,000 Palestinian detainees, the withdrawal of Israeli forces from some positions in Gaza, and an influx of humanitarian aid.
However, with the 42-day truce set to expire on Saturday, there is uncertainty about whether negotiations for the second phase will begin or if the release of more hostages will take place.
Hamas has reaffirmed its commitment to the ceasefire and is ready to enter negotiations for the next phase.
The group also condemned Israel’s efforts to block the release of prisoners, stating that this will compel them to begin negotiations for the second phase of the ceasefire deal.
Additionally, they called on other countries to address the double standards in the discourse regarding Israeli captives while ignoring the abuse Palestinian prisoners endure.
