TEL AVIV, Israel — In a highly rare exercise of wartime legal restraint, Israel’s Supreme Court ruled that the Israeli government has deprived Palestinian detainees of even a minimum subsistence diet and ordered authorities to increase the amount and improve the quality of food served to Palestinian inmates.
Although it’s the job of the Supreme Court to advise the government on the legality of its policies, the Israeli judiciary has infrequently questioned its actions during the ongoing conflict with Hamas, which commenced on October 7, 2023, claiming the lives of 1,200 civilians.
Since the outbreak of this severe conflict, Israel has detained many Palestinians in Gaza and the occupied West Bank on suspicion of militant ties. Reports from recently released detainees share alarming accounts of overcrowding, insufficient food, inadequate medical aid, and disease outbreaks such as scabies.
The three-judge panel ruled unanimously that the Israeli government has a legal obligation to provide Palestinian prisoners with three meals daily to ensure their basic survival needs are met. They defined the minimum standards needed for existence, emphasizing that this decision should not reduce the nation to the practices of its enemies.
ACRI (the Association for Civil Rights in Israel) and the human rights group Gisha successfully argued that the governmental practice of restricting food to Palestinian prisoners has caused malnutrition and starvation during the conflict. At least 61 Palestinian deaths have been recorded in Israeli custody since the beginning of the war, and there have been troubling anecdotes regarding conditions in Israeli facilities.
Minister of National Security Itamar Ben-Gvir, who oversees the prison system, criticized the court's ruling, asserting that his administration would maintain the currently minimal standards for prisoners. He argued that while Israeli hostages in Gaza face neglect, the court's defense of Palestinian prisoners undermines national dignity.
In response, ACRI has urged immediate compliance with the court order, asserting that a state should not allow starvation under any circumstance, regardless of the actions of the detainees.
Although it’s the job of the Supreme Court to advise the government on the legality of its policies, the Israeli judiciary has infrequently questioned its actions during the ongoing conflict with Hamas, which commenced on October 7, 2023, claiming the lives of 1,200 civilians.
Since the outbreak of this severe conflict, Israel has detained many Palestinians in Gaza and the occupied West Bank on suspicion of militant ties. Reports from recently released detainees share alarming accounts of overcrowding, insufficient food, inadequate medical aid, and disease outbreaks such as scabies.
The three-judge panel ruled unanimously that the Israeli government has a legal obligation to provide Palestinian prisoners with three meals daily to ensure their basic survival needs are met. They defined the minimum standards needed for existence, emphasizing that this decision should not reduce the nation to the practices of its enemies.
ACRI (the Association for Civil Rights in Israel) and the human rights group Gisha successfully argued that the governmental practice of restricting food to Palestinian prisoners has caused malnutrition and starvation during the conflict. At least 61 Palestinian deaths have been recorded in Israeli custody since the beginning of the war, and there have been troubling anecdotes regarding conditions in Israeli facilities.
Minister of National Security Itamar Ben-Gvir, who oversees the prison system, criticized the court's ruling, asserting that his administration would maintain the currently minimal standards for prisoners. He argued that while Israeli hostages in Gaza face neglect, the court's defense of Palestinian prisoners undermines national dignity.
In response, ACRI has urged immediate compliance with the court order, asserting that a state should not allow starvation under any circumstance, regardless of the actions of the detainees.
