Testimonies of Gaza Prisoners
Approximately seventy inmates, some of whom had been held since the early months of the conflict, were freed by the Israeli from Gaza on June 11. The testimony and the video demonstrated the severity of the physical and psychological abuse they received, along with the appalling circumstances they were subjected to. One of them even related the death of a prisoner who had been subjected to torture. The occupation only let these captives four minutes to pass the Beit Lahia checkpoint before soldiers opened fire on them, and they barely avoided death. They were then forced to walk and run hundreds of meters to reach populated areas as the Israeli army started shooting at them. The sick and old, who had trekked a great distance to reach Gaza, arrived in a miserable state.
Some testimonies from the prisoners:
"I was unable to open my eyes for three days due to the blood. Sewage water was splashed on those who were sleeping."
"We never saw sleep; we were beaten day and night, tortured by the cold, and forced to drink sewage water."
The Euro-Mediterranean Human Rights Monitor received confirmation from the 23-year-old detainee "Samir Abdullah Jamal Marjan" that he had been the victim of severe beatings, electric shocks, taunts, and attempts to inject him with unidentified drugs. "On March 11, 2024, at the Nablus checkpoint southwest of Gaza, the Israeli army arrested me while I was trying to flee to the south," he stated. I was taken to a detention camp close to Rafah for a period of two months, after which I was imprisoned for an additional two months in Ashkelon. Along with the other captives, I had hard days in the passageway. Every day, we endured severe torment in the form of beatings, taunts, attacks by dogs to frighten us, and even electrical shocks. It was worse in Ashkelon jail, where I spent 12 days without food and was kept in solitary confinement. They questioned us about Hamas and the tunnels and used electric shocks to extract admissions during the interrogation. They beat me when I replied I didn't know because I was a citizen and didn't know anything about such things. We were tortured and brutally attacked throughout the interrogation, which took place every ten days. I saw other inmates suffer as their health declined and they fell ill without access to medical attention. In addition, the army administered unknown injections to several captives. I was assaulted and subjected to electrical torture because I refused to be injected. Throughout the duration of the confinement, there was torture. One of the officers shocked me yesterday because I was late using the restroom, and the marks are still visible on my body. You would be electrocuted if you used the restroom for longer than four minutes. When they told me I would be freed last night, I was taken aback. After they took us and dropped us off at Zikim and started firing around us, I was so happy that I couldn't sleep."
"Every day, we witnessed deaths. Mohammed Al-Kahlout, a young man, suffered excruciating torture and died as a martyr."