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Freed Gaza Detainees Allege Severe Mistreatment in Israeli Custody

DEIR AL-BALAH, GAZA STRIP — Palestinians recently released from Israeli detention facilities report enduring harsh physical abuse and psychological torment during their imprisonment, according to accounts given at Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital.

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Multiple former detainees, visibly exhausted and bearing signs of injury, described their ordeals to Anadolu news agency. Their testimonies paint a grim picture of the conditions they faced while in Israeli custody.

Mahmoud Basim Mahmoud Ahmed recounted being forced to maintain painful positions for extended periods. “From 4 a.m. to midnight, we had to keep our hands tied above our heads. Any movement risked attack by dogs,” he stated. Ahmed also alleged that hunger strikers were subjected to degrading treatment.

Another ex-detainee, Said Abu Watfa, claimed he was subjected to electric shocks and had his teeth broken. He described being compelled to make animal noises to use bathroom facilities and forced to verbally abuse his family members.

Muin Muhammad Abdussatir Muhammad, held for approximately four months, characterized his experience as unprecedented torture, involving nightly encounters with dogs.

Marwan Mesad Shaar, 20, detained while distributing aid, spent 31 days in custody. He reported various forms of abuse, including electric shocks and beatings. When asked about prison conditions, Shaar simply stated, “We weren’t living.”

Khalid Abulkerim, held for 35 days after being apprehended in Gaza City, said detainees were kept constantly shackled and subjected to both physical and mental abuse.

These accounts emerge as international attention focuses on the treatment of detainees in the ongoing Israel-Gaza conflict. The Israeli authorities have not yet responded to these allegations.