Palestinian prisoners tortured in Israeli jails

Relatives of Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails gathered in front of the Red Cross headquarters in Gaza on Monday calling for more pressure to be placed on the Israeli occupation to reduce restrictions on their jailed family members.

The gathering is a weekly activity in which attendees hold pictures of their sons, husbands, relatives and friends.

A number of the mothers have been attending the gathering for more than 15 years. One of them is the wife of the prisoner Dirar Abu Sisi, whose health is critical. Abu Sisi, whose wife is a Ukrainian citizen, was kidnapped in Ukraine.

Recent statistic for the number of Palestinian prisoners inside Israeli jails showed that there are 5,000. Most have undergone physical or psychological torture.

According to the statistics, health conditions of 1,400 prisoners are considered critical as a result of the mistreatment and lack of proper medical services.

On February 25, 47-year-old Palestinian political prisoner Jihad Al-Taweel died in an Israeli prison after being severely tortured by jailers.

Statistic show 200 prisoners suffer schizophrenia, 120 suffer epilepsy and 20 are mentally impaired.

Activists said that Israeli actions against prisoners breach the Third and Fourth Geneva Conventions, which guarantee the right to medical care and treatment for patient prisoners, as well as regular health examinations.

MEMO Photographer: Mohammed Asad

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