Middle East Monitor / September 28, 2023
The occupation state of Israel has detained more than 135,000 Palestinians since the outbreak of Al-Aqsa Intifada in September 2000, the Detainees’ and Ex-Detainees’ Affairs Commission said on Wednesday. All sectors of Palestinian society have been affected, including children, women and the elderly.
In a report issued on the occasion of the 23rd anniversary of the start of the Second (Al-Aqsa) Intifada, the commission noted that almost 21,000 of those arrested and detained were children. It also pointed out that half of the members of the Palestinian parliament were detained and several ministers, as well as hundreds of academics, journalists and national and international NGO workers.
More than 2,600 Palestinian girls and women have been detained. Four women had to give birth in prison under very difficult conditions.
The report recorded a remarkable increase in administrative detentions, citing more than 32,000 such detention orders since 2000, including new and renewed orders. Palestinians held under administrative detention are neither charged nor given a fair trial. Secret evidence is used which is not shown to the detainees or their lawyers.
The Commission stated that there are around 5,200 Palestinian prisoners held by Israel today. The number includes 38 women, around 170 children, more than 1,250 administrative detainees, and 700 sick prisoners suffering from various health issues, including 24 with cancer.
