Human Rights and Democracy Media Center- SHAMS, affirms that martyrdom of the ill disabled prisoner Izzi El- Deen Ziab Al- Banna, 40 years old from Al- Zaitoun Quarter- Gaza City, is an indication of the policy of torture and medical negligence applied by the Israeli authorities against Palestinian prisoners. The Israeli authorities declared the death of prisoner Al-Banna on Friday 23/2/2024 and reported that he passed away in Al- Ramla Prison Hospital last Tuesday but his death was not declared at that time. The martyr has been arrested before a couple of months without declaring the place where he was detained. The Israeli army does not declare the places where prisoners from the Gaza Strip are detained and there is no information about the circumstances of their detention. These practices reveal the applied force disappearance crime that Israel is practicing against the Palestinians, from the Gaza Strip, who are detained since October 7, 2023.
SHAMS Center affirms that the increase in the number of martyr prisoners since October 7, 2023 (11 martyrs), is a dangerous indication of the Israeli systematic policy to kill prisoners and torture them. The applied medical negligence policy led to increased deterioration within the circumstances of the Palestinian prisoners. As a result of the inhuman medical negligence policy, tens of Palestinian prisoners have been killed inside Israeli prisons since the year 1967. With the martyrdom of prisoner Izzi El- Deen Al- Banna, from the Gaza Strip, the number of Palestinian prisoners killed inside the Israeli prisons, since the beginning of the occupation in the year 1967, reaches 248 martyrs. 88 of them died as a result of the policy of medical negligence while 73 were killed as a result of the torture. 80 prisoners were intentionally killed after they were arrested while 7 prisoners were killed by being shot directly. Many of the martyr prisoners were sick prisoners and those who suffered chronic diseases including those who were sentenced and those who were still in the investigation. The Israeli authorities torture Palestinian prisoners to extract confessions from them and the medical negligence policy is utilized as a tool to torture and press on Palestinian prisoners
SHAMS Center affirms that killing Palestinian prisoners in the Israeli prisons as a result of the medical negligence and torture, is a profound violation of the international humanitarian law. In particular, it violates the Geneva Third Convention (dated 12/8/1949). Article 13 of the Convention stipulates: “No prisoner of war may be subjected to physical mutilation or to medical or scientific experiments of any kind which are not justified by the medical, dental or hospital treatment of the prisoner concerned and carried out in his interest”. It violates Article 15 of the same Convention, which states: “The Power detaining prisoners of war shall be bound to provide free of charge for their maintenance and for the medical attention required by their state of health”. The Israeli occupation is violating Article 24 of the Geneva First Convention, which states: “Medical personnel exclusively engaged in the search for, or the collection, transport or treatment of the wounded or sick, or in the prevention of disease, staff exclusively engaged in the administration of medical units and establishments”. Likewise, the Israeli occupation is violating the Convention on Prevention of Torture and Other Forms of Cruel and Degrading Treatment (dated 10/12/1984)
SHAMS Center calls on the Secretary- General of the United Nations, UN High Commissioner of Human Rights, Un Special Rapporteur on Torture, International Committee of the Red Cross, Amnesty International, Doctors without Borders, and governmental/ non- governmental organization, to exert pressure on the occupation state to stop executing prisoners through systematic torture and medical negligence. There should be pressure by all those actors to obligate the Israeli occupation to allow visiting the prisoners in the prisons and interrogation centers and declare the places where Palestinian prisoners are held custody. Prisoners should be allowed to have visits from their lawyers and the Israeli Prisons Authority should provide prisoners with medical clinics and provide them with periodical medical checkup.