Jerusalem: Israel is currently detaining 37 Palestinian journalists in its prisons, including 19 under administrative detention without formal charges or trials, as reported by the Palestinian Prisoner Society on Sunday. The nongovernmental organization highlighted that these detentions occurred following the onset of violence labeled as the Gaza genocide in October 2023.
According to Anadolu Agency, the Palestinian Prisoner Society emphasized that Israel is actively targeting Palestinian journalists through various means, including arrests, prison sentences, solitary confinement, and prosecution related to their professional activities and freedom of expression. Among the recently detained are journalists Muath Ammarna and Sabri Jibrin, who were apprehended after Israeli forces conducted raids on their homes in Bethlehem, located in the southern West Bank.
The society noted that Ammarna has faced repeated targeting by Israeli authorities and is now experiencing detention for the third time due to his journalistic endeavors. Additionally, the group referenced the case of journalist and writer Mahmoud Fatafta, who received a 48-month prison sentence on charges of 'incitement,' a claim made by Israel and regarded as one of the most severe sentences in such contexts according to the group's statement.
Furthermore, the Palestinian Prisoner Society indicated that Israeli authorities are increasingly employing 'incitement' charges against journalists, along with administrative detention based on undisclosed 'secret files.' Among the detained journalists, 19 hail from the occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem, and are held under administrative detention, comprising 51% of all detained journalists.
The society further highlighted the plight of journalist Bushra al-Tawil, aged 33, who was moved from Damon Prison in northern Israel to solitary confinement at Ramla Prison in central Israel. It accused Israeli authorities of escalating isolation and other restrictive measures against female Palestinian prisoners, alongside deprivation of food, denial of medical treatment, and inadequate sanitation conditions.
Detained journalists face conditions similar to other Palestinian prisoners, marked by hunger, medical neglect, torture, abuse, solitary confinement, and denial of basic rights. The organization noted that journalists are also subjected to killings, enforced disappearances, and direct attacks while performing their duties. These actions are described as part of a systematic policy aimed at hindering Palestinian reporting and documentation of Israeli offenses and violations.
The occupied West Bank has been experiencing daily Israeli army raids and intensified attacks by occupiers since the Gaza genocide began in October 2023. These attacks have entailed killings, arrests, demolitions, assaults on homes, vehicles, and mosques, destruction of agricultural areas, restrictions on farmers, displacement of Palestinians, and expansion of illegal settlements.
On Thursday, the Palestinian Prisoner Society reported that Israeli forces detained more than 100 Palestinians across the West Bank over the preceding week, raising the total number of West Bank detainees since October 2023 to over 25,000, in addition to thousands detained from Gaza.