Rights Group: “Israel” Detains Over 12,000 Palestinians in West Bank since October 2023

By Staff, Agencies

“Israeli” forces have detained at least 12,100 Palestinians across the occupied West Bank since the entity launched a genocidal military campaign against the besieged Gaza Strip in October last year, a Palestinian prisoners’ advocacy group reports.

The Palestinian Prisoners Club stated in an updated report on Friday that most arrests occurred in the governorates of Al-Khalil [“Hebron”] and occupied Al-Quds [“Jerusalem”]. Over 10,000 administrative detention orders were issued during this period.

Among those detained are more than 440 women and 795 children. “Israeli” forces have also arrested 141 journalists, 59 of whom remain in custody, including five women and 33 journalists from Gaza.

Of the detainees, 11,000 are held in so-called “administrative detention” without trial or charge. Under this policy, the occupying entity detains Palestinians without trial for up to six months, with the period renewable indefinitely.

The figures do not include Palestinians detained in Gaza, estimated to be in the thousands.

The ongoing arrest campaigns have been marked by severe abuse, including physical violence, threats, and the destruction of detainees' homes, as well as the confiscation of personal property such as vehicles, cash and jewelry. Detainees were used as human shields, while their families were held as hostages for varying periods.

In addition to mass arrests, the Prisoners Club noted that "Israeli" forces have carried out field executions, including targeting detainees' family members.

The entity continues to withhold the bodies of 47 Palestinian prisoners who have died in its jails since the start of the war on Gaza.

In recent years, "Israeli" military raids in the West Bank have become routine, escalating further with the onset of the war on Gaza on October 7, 2023. Palestinians in the West Bank have also faced violent attacks by illegal settlers.

Since the start of the war, at least 809 Palestinians have been killed, and over 6,450 others injured by "Israeli" army fire in the occupied territory, according to the Health Ministry.

In July, the International Court of Justice declared that the decades-long occupation of Palestinian land by "Israel" is illegal and called for the evacuation of all existing settlements in the West Bank and East Al-Quds.

The war on Gaza was launched by "Israel" on October 7, 2023, following Hamas's surprise Operation Al-Aqsa Flood, which was carried out in response to the entity’s decades-long campaign of oppression and devastation against Palestinians.

The ongoing assault on Gaza has caused the martyrdom at least 44,875 Palestinians, mostly women and children. Thousands remain missing and are presumed dead beneath the rubble.