Israeli forces detained 230 Palestinian minors since January: Rights group

Israeli military forces continue to target young Palestinians and violently arrest them across the occupied territories, having detained 230 minors since the beginning of the current year.

The Palestinian Prisoners Society (PPS) said in a report on Sunday that the arrests were mostly in the occupied city of Jerusalem al-Quds.

The rights group further noted that the detainees are often released on bail or placed under house arrest, without announcing the number of those who were freed.

“The imprisoned children are subjected to various forms of abuse, including being denied food or drink for long hours, verbal abuse and being detained under harsh conditions,” it said.

The report came just a day before Palestinian Children’s Day, which is marked annually on April 5 with cultural, educational and media activities aimed at raising awareness on the plight of Palestinian children.

Marking Palestine Children's Day, the Palestine Prisoners' Club revealed that there are 140 Palestinian children languishing in Israel jails, including two under administrative detention.

Separately, the Defense for Children International - Palestine (DCIP) said in a statement that 85 percent of Palestinian children arrested last year were “subjected to physical violence.”

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The Geneva-based movement noted that it has documented 27 cases in which Israeli forces held children in solitary confinement citing investigation purposes for two or more days.

The organization said the practice amounts to “torture or cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment."

It said it has registered the issuance of administrative detention orders against 36 Palestinian children since October 2015, two of whom are still in detention.

In 2020, Israeli forces killed nine Palestinian children in the occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem al-Quds, and the Gaza Strip, six of whom were killed with live ammunition, according to documentation collected by DCIP. 

More than 7,000 Palestinian prisoners are currently held in some 17 Israeli jails, with dozens of them serving multiple life sentences.

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Over 350 detainees, including women and minors, are under Israel’s administrative detention.

The administrative detention, which is a form of imprisonment without trial or charge, allows authorities to incarcerate Palestinians for up to six months. The duration could be extended for an infinite number of times.

Some prisoners have been held in administrative detention for up to 11 years.

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