Report: Israeli Prisons Have Turned into a 'Grave' for the Living

SadaNews - Palestinian journalist Mujahid Bani Muflih says that Israeli prisons have turned into a "grave" for the living, recounting the details of his treatment journey after a severe deterioration in his health following his release from an Israeli prison, according to the "Agence France-Presse".

Bani Muflih (37 years old) spent six months in administrative detention, accused of inciting violence against Israel through his journalistic work.

Two days after his release in January, he suffered a severe brain hemorrhage, after which he was rushed to the hospital in critical condition, according to the Palestinian Prisoner Club.

Muflih is currently resting in Ibn Sina Specialized Hospital in Jenin in the northern West Bank, where he underwent a series of surgeries that forced the doctors to remove part of his skull.

Muflih's facial features have changed significantly, his body has become emaciated, and he struggles to speak. He is currently undergoing rehabilitation treatment to regain his ability to speak and move.

Muflih says of his months of detention: "The prison was like a grave".

He recounts his arrest after the Israeli army raided his home in the town of Baita, south of Nablus in the northern occupied West Bank in June 2025. "I was assaulted inside the house in front of my three children."

The journalist, who works as an editor at the Palestinian website "Ultra Sawt", adds: "In the first few minutes of the arrest, I was beaten in the military jeep, and I was subsequently taken to the hospital on the first day after losing my ability to breathe because of the beating".

He continues that the image of his young son, Arab (4 years), was ever-present during the first days of his detention, saying, "All I remembered was his picture as he cried after waking up to the soldiers' shouting inside the house".

The Israeli army and the Israeli prison authorities did not immediately respond to a request by "Agence France-Presse" for comment on Muflih's account.

However, the prison authority continuously reiterates that all detainees are held based on the law, and that their rights are protected.

After his release, Bani Muflih posted a video on social media in which he said he "understood what real hunger means" when he was in prison.

Bani Muflih's wife, Nuha Sharfa, told "Agence France-Presse", "There has been an improvement in his health", as he is now able to eat by mouth after being connected to feeding tubes through his stomach and nose.

"Torture camp"

Israeli, Palestinian, and international NGOs have warned of the "mistreatment" and "torture" practiced in Israeli prisons, especially since the outbreak of the war in Gaza following a Hamas attack on Israel on October 7, 2023.

In a report issued by the Israeli "B'Tselem" center, which is concerned with human rights in the occupied territories at the beginning of this year under the title "Welcome to Hell", it pointed out that more than a dozen of the Israeli civilian and military detention facilities have transformed into a network of camps aimed primarily at mistreating the human detainees within them.

Bani Muflih says he was detained "without any complete and substantiated charge" against him, adding: "They claim that I incite" violence.

"B'Tselem" defines administrative detention as holding a person without trial on the grounds that he intends in the future to commit an act against the law without having committed any offense yet, in what seems like a preventive measure. There is no specification of the duration of the detention that can be renewed.

In late April, Israel released journalist Ali Samoudi (60 years old) from Jenin after a year of detention. Samoudi appeared emaciated after having lost half of his weight, according to photos taken by an "Agence France-Presse" photographer after his release upon returning to his home.

The Committee to Protect Journalists reported that between October 2023 and June 2026, 108 journalists or media workers were detained in Israel and the occupied Palestinian territories, including 102 detained by Israel and six detained by Palestinian authorities.