‘They Infected Our Food with Viruses’: Freed Palestinian Detainee Recounts Torture in Israeli Prisons
Gaza (Quds News Network)- A freed Palestinian detainee from Gaza recounted the torture they endured in Israeli occupation prisons, describing how the prison administration deliberately infected their food with viruses, causing severe illness.
“For six months, we suffered from boils, scabies and all kinds of skin diseases,” the freed detainee said.
“The Israeli Officer saw us crawling, unable to walk due to the lack of food and medicine. But he didn’t care. He would say: “Go later.. go die! But I want you to stand in line.” How could I stand in line while covered in scabies and boils?”
He added that the situation was extremely difficult, highlighting that Ofer Prison — the most horrific of all, a true “graveyard of prisons” — was where the Israeli prison administration was amputating detainees’ legs and fingers.
He mentioned that one of the detainees who had his fingers amputated was Mahmoud Abu Taima.
A freed Palestinian detainee from Gaza recounts the brutal torture inflicted by the Israeli occupation, describing how soldiers laced their food with viruses, causing severe illness, and amputated detainees' limbs in Ofer Prison. pic.twitter.com/1YX3PpbbMe
— Quds News Network (@QudsNen) February 15, 2025
Lately, the priosn administration was following policies that left nearly 25% of Palestinian detainees with scabies, Haaretz reported in November. Human rights groups filed a petition with Israel’s High Court, stating that the Israeli Prison Service (IPS) has failed to contain the disease.
Former detainees describe filthy conditions, delayed medical care, and dismissive responses to their pleas for help.
Rights groups in the occupation state, including Physicians for Human Rights and Adalah, said the IPS has ignored essential protocols to stop the outbreak.
They confirmed that this neglect has led to the cancellation of military court hearings and legal consultations. The IPS admitted in court that scabies outbreaks caused delays.
Petitioners presented evidence of canceled hearings and restricted legal access.
Scabies in Israeli Jails Amid Gaza Genocide
Overcrowding and poor conditions in Israeli prisons fueled the outbreak, with conditions worsening during the Gaza genocide. Around 23,000 detainees are crammed into facilities designed for 14,500, exceeding capacity by 60%. Of these, 10,000 are Palestinian detainees labeled as “security detainees.”
Murshid, a former detainee, described a cell built for six holding ten people, with some sleeping on the floor. He said the IPS ignored requests to separate infected prisoners for two months.
“When we asked for help, they said, ‘You are terrorists and deserve to die.’ At first, they only gave us paracetamol,” Murshid told Haaretz. Proper treatment came weeks later, and a dermatologist only examined the situation four months after the outbreak began.
Medical Neglect
Rights groups said the IPS has failed to provide enough medical resources. Detainees reported being denied access to laundry, dirty clothes, and insufficient dermatological care.
The IPS claimed it has set up a task force and begun distributing medication and washing clothes at high temperatures. Rights groups said these steps are too late and insufficient.
