Palestinian woman gives birth in Israel’s Damon prison following arrest during pregnancy

Palestinian prisoner Dana Joudeh, 35, from Iraq al-Tayeh in Nablus governorate, gave birth to a baby girl on Monday inside Israel’s Damon prison in northern occupied Palestine, six months after being placed under administrative detention, amid what her family and human rights organisations described as medical neglect.

Local sources said Joudeh’s family and human rights organisations held the Israeli authorities and prison administration responsible for the safety of the prisoner and her newborn, saying that arresting her while pregnant, placing her under administrative detention and denying her necessary healthcare amounted to violations of international law and conventions.

Joudeh had spent six months in administrative detention, which allows Israel to imprison Palestinians without charge or trial, and was due to be released on Tuesday after her detention order expires, unless the order is renewed. 

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The Israeli authorities hold about 88 Palestinian women prisoners in Damon prison amid difficult detention conditions, including, according to Palestinian figures, medical neglect, starvation, repression and denial of basic rights and religious practices, as well as isolation and restrictions on their daily lives.

The Palestinian Commission of Detainees and Ex-Detainees Affairs held the Israeli authorities responsible for the safety of the women prisoners, particularly pregnant women, sick prisoners, minors, elderly women and those with disabilities. It called on international human rights and humanitarian organisations to take urgent action to monitor their conditions and press for their basic rights to be upheld.

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