Palestinian children face abuses in Israeli detention: Report

Palestinian children held in Israeli detention have faced alleged abuses, with conditions said to have worsened since Oct. 7, 2023, a Save the Children report said, according to the daily De Standaard on Saturday.

The report says around 350 Palestinian children are currently held in Israeli detention, including both pre-trial and administrative detention without charge.

It alleges that children have been subjected to physical violence, prolonged interrogations and poor detention conditions, including overcrowding and limited access to family contact.

According to the report, access for humanitarian organizations to detention facilities has been restricted, limiting independent monitoring of conditions.

Save the Children called for an end to the detention of Palestinian children and urged full access for independent monitors, including the International Committee of the Red Cross.

“By maintaining privileged relations with Israel, the European Union is also complicit in this,” said Marc Botenga, a Belgian member of the European Parliament on US social media company X.

More than 9,500 Palestinians are held in Israeli prisons, including 350 children and 73 women. Palestinian and Israeli human rights groups have said detainees face torture, starvation and medical neglect, leading to dozens of deaths.

Since October 2023, Israel has intensified measures against Palestinian prisoners alongside its war in the Gaza Strip.

The conflict has killed more than 72,000 people and wounded 172,000 in Gaza, most of them women and children.