On December 16, 2024, the Association for Civil Rights appealed to the Chief Military Prosecutor, following grave accounts received by HaMoked Center for Defense of the Individual regarding inhumane detention conditions at the Anatot military detention facility, and regarding the abuse and humiliation of detainees. The appeal was also sent on behalf of HaMoked Center for Defense of the Individual, Gisha, the Committee Against Torture, and Physicians for Human Rights.
The appeal describes the illegal and inhumane detention conditions under which Palestinian detainees are being held at the Anatot military detention facility, including degrading treatment, denial of basic rights, and poor sanitary conditions. According to testimonies, detainees are held in pens of 50 people; forced to sleep on thin mattresses or sit on thin blankets; and are shackled throughout all hours of the day, blindfolded, and forbidden to speak. There are not enough toilets, so detainees wait hours to relieve themselves, and showers are rare. Lack of proper medical treatment leads to injuries and illnesses becoming worse. Additionally, detainees testified that soldiers spit on them and cursed at them, and woke them up several times during the night to prevent them from sleeping continuously.
The appeal argues that this conduct violates the Unlawful Combatants Law of 2002, as well as provisions of international humanitarian law. We mentioned the ruling given in September 2024 regarding Sde Teiman, which determined that "the only way to hold detainees - in Sde Teiman or any other detention facility - must be the way directed by law." The demands that the detainees in Camp Anatot be transferred to regulated detention facilities that would provide them with the conditions they are entitled to under Israeli and international law. We also requested an order for a comprehensive investigation of the soldiers’ and commanders’ conduct at the facility.
ACRI’s appeal, December 16, 2024 (Heb)
Preliminary answer on behalf of the military prosecutor's office, December 24, 2024 (Heb)
ACRI’s response, December 25, 2024 (Heb)
Media Links:
Hagar Shezaf, Bar Peleg, Gaza detainees testify: abuse in military detention facilities is not only in Sde Teiman, Haaretz, January 15, 2025 (Heb)