TPC Staff
The Palestine Chronicle / August 11, 2026
Israeli minister Itamar Ben-Gvir is openly campaigning for harsher treatment of Palestinian detainees, showcasing deprivation, threats and degrading prison conditions.
‘You’re going to die’
Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir has turned the treatment of Palestinian detainees into an election campaign message, releasing footage from inside a detention facility in which he boasts about harsh prison conditions and tells a Palestinian detainee complaining about food that he is “going to die.”
In footage circulated as part of his political messaging, Ben-Gvir confronted the detainee after he raised the issue of food inside the facility.
“This is how we treat Israel’s enemies: you’re not going to get any more food, I feel no pity for you,” Ben-Gvir said.
“This isn’t a hotel—you’re going to die. It’s not worth fighting against Israel; you don’t stir any pity in me,” he added.
The footage presents the deprivation experienced by Palestinian detainees as evidence of Ben-Gvir’s record in office, effectively transforming prison conditions into an electoral selling point ahead of Israeli elections.
His campaign has also released an AI-generated video depicting an emaciated and visibly distressed Palestinian detainee sitting on the floor without basic necessities.
The imagery is contrasted with what the campaign portrays as more favourable conditions enjoyed by Palestinian detainees before Ben-Gvir took office, reinforcing his claim that he has deliberately worsened prison conditions.
‘This is not a hotel’
The latest footage is not an isolated incident. Earlier this month, Ben-Gvir circulated another video showing him confronting a Palestinian female detainee after she complained about inadequate food and water.
“This is not a hotel,” Ben-Gvir told her, saying that prison was a place for detainees “to think about what (they] did.”
The circumstances of the woman’s detention were unclear. Thousands of Palestinians, however, are currently being held by Israel without charge or trial.
Ben-Gvir has repeatedly made harsher conditions for Palestinian prisoners a central component of his political agenda, including advocating the execution of Palestinian detainees and supporting legislation allowing the death penalty for Palestinian prisoners.
He has also personally entered Israeli prisons to confront prominent Palestinian detainees. In 2025, footage showed him threatening imprisoned Palestinian leader Marwan Barghouti inside his cell.
Crocodile moat blocked – over animal welfare
One of the most extreme proposals associated with Ben-Gvir’s prison policies has been a plan to surround Ketziot Prison, where Palestinians are detained, with a moat containing crocodiles.
An Israeli court temporarily blocked the transfer of the animals earlier this month after an animal welfare organization challenged the project.
Israeli authorities had previously removed the Nile crocodile’s protected status, clearing a regulatory obstacle to the proposal, while construction work reportedly began around one of the prison’s special wings.
Ben-Gvir said the idea was inspired by US President Donald Trump’s “Alligator Alcatraz,” the controversial immigration detention facility in Florida.
Significantly, the Israeli court’s intervention centered on the potential suffering of the crocodiles rather than the implications of deploying them around a prison holding Palestinian detainees.
“The expected harm to the crocodiles merit(s) investigation and justif(ies) issuing an order prohibiting the transfer, or any action related to locating or preparing crocodiles for transfer,” the judge reportedly said.
Animal welfare organization Let the Animals Live argued that “crocodiles are not weapons, a means of punishment, or props for a political campaign.”
Ben-Gvir responded by portraying the ruling as a victory for Palestinian detainees.
“We know the terrorists are trembling at the prospect of the alligators’ arrival, but today the court came to their aid,” he said.
Palestinian suffering as political capital
Ben-Gvir’s campaign is unfolding against a much broader crisis inside Israeli prisons and detention facilities.
Around 9,500 Palestinians are currently being held by Israel, including approximately 94 women and more than 350 children. Thousands are held without charge or trial.
At least 105 Palestinian detainees were reported to have died in Israeli custody between October 2023 and June 2026, amid mounting allegations of torture, starvation, medical neglect and other forms of abuse.
Restrictions on family visits and access by the International Committee of the Red Cross have further isolated detainees, while Palestinian organizations have repeatedly documented severe shortages of food, clothing, hygiene products and medical treatment.
Human rights organizations and UN experts have documented evidence of torture, sexual violence, extreme hunger and degrading treatment of Palestinians in Israeli custody, while UN officials have warned that abuses have at times been supported, tolerated or condoned at senior political levels.
Against this backdrop, Ben-Gvir’s campaign messaging goes beyond defending controversial prison policies. By publishing confrontations with detainees, promoting images of starvation and presenting worsening conditions as an accomplishment, the Israeli minister is making the suffering of Palestinian prisoners itself part of his electoral appeal.
(TPC, Al-Mayadeen, Israeli media)
