Report: Harsh Conditions Faced by Minor Prisoners in "Megiddo Prison"

SadaNews - The Palestinian Authority for Prisoners and Released Prisoners stated that the administration of Israeli occupation prisons continues to impose punitive measures against child prisoners (minors), comparable in severity to the retaliatory measures imposed on adult prisoners since the onset of the aggression against the Gaza Strip.

The authority pointed out in a statement issued today, Wednesday, that the detained children are held in cells stripped of any essentials, are doubly isolated, and are denied visits from their families. This is in light of the ongoing deprivation of thousands of prisoners from family visits.

Additionally, the administration of Megiddo Prison deliberately brings the minor prisoners to visits with their hands and feet shackled, blindfolded, and their heads covered with black bags. Once they are taken to the visiting room, the blindfold is removed, but their hands are bound in such a way that makes it difficult for them to hold a phone, while the shackles on their feet remain. Despite legal teams demanding the necessity of removing the shackles during visits, the prison administration refuses to comply.

Among the procedures reported by a lawyer from the authority following her visit to the minors recently is that the prison rooms lack the minimum standards of international child rights and prisoner rights. They are unsanitary, infested with insects, and lack adequate ventilation and lighting. The minors held inside are subjected daily to verbal abuse, beatings, isolation, sexual harassment, and collective punishments.