Israel is detaining pregnant Palestinian women, commission says

By Adam Schrader
JUNE 30, 2024 /

An Israel Prison Service van leaves the Damon Prison where it holds Palestinian prisoners, File Photo by Nimrod Glikman/EPA

June 30 (UPI) -- At least two women that have been detained by Israel are pregnant as conditions, including sexual harassment by their Israeli guards, continue to worsen for Palestinian prisoners.

"The policy of abuse and punishments against female detainees is not needed, but it increased in its intensity since October 7, 2023," the Palestinian Commission for the Affairs of Prisoners and Ex-Prisoners said in a statement on Telegram on Sunday.

The agency named the two pregnant women detained as Jihad Nakhlah and Aysha Ghidan. There are currently 78 women prisoners at the Damon prison.

"They have been completely isolated from the outside world, and deprived of their simplest rights such as clothes and medical care in spite of the seriousness of health conditions for those who have chronic diseases," the agency said.

"Furthermore, they are subjected to physical abuse and suppression since the beginning of their arrest, in addition to sexual harassment during strip search and other threats."

An attorney for the agency visited the prison and confirmed that the Israel Prison Service "intends to crack down on female detainees" as summer approaches. Israeli guards allegedly confiscate fans as temperatures rise.

The news comes weeks after it was revealed that nearly 9,300 Palestinian prisoners have been arrested and are currently held in Israeli prisons and detention centers, according to the Palestine Prisoner's Society. Around 250 prisoners are children.

More than 3,400 Palestinians are currently under "administrative detention," which allows Israeli officials to hold them without charge or trial. The human rights group Amnesty International has said the practice has "dramatically increased" since the war. Palestinians and their supporters often equate this practice to kidnapping.

Amnesty International has documented cases of Israeli soldiers torturing Palestinian detainees, including "severe beatings" and "humiliation." The human rights group said that such torture had been occurring "for decades" before Hamas' attack Oct. 7.

And, Israeli forces have continued to detain dozens of journalists and healthcare workers in Gaza.