From Press Rooms to Prison Cells: The Struggle of Palestinian Journalists Detained by Israel
The report was fact-checked by Fatima Bani Ahmad from the "AFCN" under the supervision of the "AFCN" manager, Saja Mortada. Prepared by Baker Abdulhaq and Rana Salahat
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| The report was prepared in cooperation between the Palestinian Observatory “Tahaqaq” and the Arab Fact-Checkers Network (AFCN). |
Barely could the photojournalist Muath Amarnah from the Dheisheh refugee camp southeast of Bethlehem move forward in his life. Due to the loss of his left eye, his life turned upside down. However, the Israeli occupation paid no heed to his suffering caused by their bullets. He was arrested on October 16, 2023, after his house was raided and the main door was forcibly broken at dawn, then he was roughly shackled before being taken to the “Ofer” prison west of Ramallah, and finally to the “Megiddo” prison inside the Green Line.
Amarnah’s ordeal is just one of the many stories of suffering endured by Palestinian journalists after the events of October 7, 2023. Following these events, the Israeli occupation launched a ruthless campaign of arrests targeting 56 journalists, according to reports from the Palestinian Journalists Syndicate issued on January 30 of last year. They were arrested under harsh conditions with no regard for their human rights guaranteed by international law during detention and arrest.
Walaa Amarneh, his wife, says that his detention conditions were extremely harsh. He was brutally beaten on his head and all over his body, resulting in the breaking of his medical glasses. She adds, “Despite his suffering from the loss of his left eye in 2019, the occupation authorities refused to provide him with new medical glasses, and they also did not allow his artificial eye to enter his place of detention.”
The Palestinian Prisoners Society confirms that the journalist Amarnah, who is serving a six-month administrative detention sentence, also suffers from chronic diabetes and needs daily medication. Additionally, his health has deteriorated due to the harsh living conditions in prison, where the food is insufficient and unsuitable for consumption, and the clothing is scarce and inadequate for weather conditions. International organizations are calling for his immediate release and fair treatment in detention.
The plight of imprisoned journalists in Israeli prisons is not much different from Amarnah’s suffering. Shaimaa Jabari, the journalist Mohammed Al-Atrash wife, who has been detained since November 8, 2023, provides another testimony regarding the harsh detention conditions endured by Palestinian journalists. Jabari recounts her husband’s lawyer’s description of the harsh detention conditions, stating that he was brutally beaten during his arrest, resulting in a dislocated shoulder and a broken finger, in addition to losing over 30 kilograms of weight so far.
She adds, “I was only able to communicate with my husband during his detention through his private lawyer, who managed to visit him after 75 days of his arrest. I learned about his suffering due to detention and imprisonment. The prison lacks food, drink, and many prisoner necessities. Moreover, Israeli authorities prohibit anything from being brought by family members, especially since Mohammed was not allowed to change his clothes until 70 days after his arrest.”
The reality of imprisoned female journalists in Israeli prisons is also no different. Among them is the journalist prisoner Ikhlas Sawalha, who was arrested while passing through the Deir Sharaf military checkpoint west of Nablus and is currently detained in the “Damoun” prisons. According to her brother, Moufaq, her detention conditions are bad, as Israeli soldiers deliberately pour cold water and ice on her.
Regarding the situation of imprisoned journalists in Israeli occupation prisons, Omar Nazzal, a member of the General Secretariat of the Palestinian Journalists Syndicate and deputy head of the syndicate, confirms that Israeli prisons have witnessed a significant deterioration since the events of October 7 last year, turning from bad to worse.
Israeli Minister of Public Security Itmar Ben-Gvir has waged a real war against Palestinian prisoners, including journalist prisoners in Israeli prisons, leading to a significant deterioration in their conditions due to starvation, thirst, inadequate water and food, and deprivation of medical care. Bathing has become restricted, with soap and toothpaste banned from reaching prisoners, along with a ban on all hygiene essentials.
Israeli minister Ben-Gvir has also withdrawn all the achievements of the prisoner movement achieved over the past decades, in blatant violation of international law, taking advantage of the world’s preoccupation with the Israeli war on Gaza to impose these arbitrary measures.
According to the Palestinian Prisoners Society, Israeli occupation forces have arrested 49 journalists since the events of October 7, 2023, with 35 journalists still held in Israeli prisons, and at least 15 prisoners have been released after serving various terms until the time of preparing this report.
Moreover, 48 journalists and journalists from the West Bank alone are still detained in Israeli prisons, including 15 journalists who were arrested before the events of October 7, 2023, while 21 journalists are subject to arbitrary administrative detention without evidence or charges, until March 11, 2024, including journalists detained administratively before the events of October 7, 2023.
According to Nazzal, the Israeli occupation inherited administrative detention from the British Mandate, which was approved within the Emergency Laws of 1945, and the occupation uses it as a means of revenge against journalists for their journalistic work and freedom of expression.
Among these journalists is Nidal Abu Aker, who has spent a total of 18 years in Israeli prisons, more than 13 of which were spent in administrative detention at different times. In one of the detention rounds, he spent only 45 days free between the previous and subsequent detentions.
The report includes documentation of all arrests of Palestinian journalists since the events of October 7, 2023, until the preparation of the report, indicating the disappearance of colleagues from Gaza, Nidal Al-Wahidi and Haitham Abdulwahid, since their arrest. The Israeli authorities have since refused to disclose their whereabouts or the legal reasons and justifications for their detention, according to a report by Amnesty International.
