Israeli attack on prisoners ‘clear attempt to kill them,’ say Palestinian organisations

Two major organisations concerned with the issues facing Palestinians held prisoner by Israel have said that the latest attack on Abdullah Ghaleb Barghouti and his cellmates in Shatta Prison was a clear attempt to kill them. Barghouti has been in prison since 2003, serving 67 life sentences.

“Testimonies obtained through recently released prisoners confirm that Barghouti was attacked by the repressive [Israeli] forces in Shatta Prison,” said the Palestinian Commission for Detainees and Ex-Detainees and the Palestinian Prisoners’ Club. “He sustained fractures in his chest his cellmates were also beaten in what was a brutal and serious assault.”

The assault was a “clear attempt to kill” the prisoners, added the organisations in their joint statement. They pointed out that the Israeli prison authorities have increased the abuses of Palestinian prisoners since the start of the military offensive against the Palestinians in the Gaza Strip last October. “Prisoners are subject to constant abuse and their lawyers’ visits have been blocked. Barghouti alone has had three visitation requests blocked by the authorities.”

Abuses faced by Palestinian prisoners include torture, starvation and medical negligence, it is alleged. Lawyers who have been allowed to visit their clients in prison report that such incidents are getting worse.

“Such abuses by the Israeli authorities have been taking place for decades,” said the prisoners’ organisations. “The only difference now is that the current level is unprecedented and there are genuine concerns that this will become the norm for all prisoners.”

Palestinian Jordanian Barghouti was subjected to a lengthy and harsh interrogation lasting months after his arrest in 2003. He was also placed in solitary confinement for several years. During his imprisonment, he has written a number of books, including his autobiography, Prince of the Shadows: An Engineer on the Road, in which he detailed his struggle against the Israeli occupation of Palestine.

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