Overview

As soon as the war broke out, thousands of Gaza residents were taken into custody and held in Israel under the Incarceration of Unlawful Combatants Law. Whether in military prisons or Israel Prison Service (IPS) facilities, these detainees were subjected to brutal conditions, and harsh abuse and neglect, including medical neglect, on an unprecedented scale. Many of them were not involved in the attack on Israel and were ultimately released as non-dangerous. At the same time, an Incarceration...

Detention mechanisms

Detainees held under the Incarceration of Unlawful Combatants Law Since the Hamas attack on October 7, 2023, and the subsequent war, thousands of Palestinian residents of the Gaza Strip have been detained under the Incarceration of Unlawful Combatants Law, 5762-2002. Although initially arrested as terror suspects, according to information provided by the state  during a July 2024 court proceeding, approximately 50% of the 4,000 detainees taken from Gaza and held in Israel in the early months...

Death in military or IPS custody

Based on information collected from official sources through Freedom of Information requests, human rights organizations, and media outlets, and verified by Physicians for Human Rights Israel through cross-referencing directly-managed cases, collected testimonies, and participation in post-mortem examinations, at least 94 Palestinian security prisoners and detainees died in IPS and military facilities or while being transferred by the military to these locations between October 7, 2023, and...

Detention conditions

Detention conditions in both military and IPS facilities are extremely harsh, and, as noted, have led to deaths. In addition to Gaza residents detained as “unlawful combatants” since the start of the war, other security detainees and prisoners, adults and minors alike, including persons taken into custody before October 2023, have been subjected to conditions that have been deliberately and significantly worsened since the outbreak of hostilities. As of October 2025, following the prisoner...

Abuse of detainees

Since the outbreak of the war, thousands of Gazans have been held as unlawful combatants in military detention facilities at the Ofer, Sde Teiman, Naftali and Anatot military camps (the latter closed in May 2025). Human rights organizations and media outlets have documented extremely harsh detention conditions, especially during the early months of the conflict: constant four-limb shackling, including during sleep and meals; blindfolding; denial of contact with the outside world (with lawyers...

Forced disappearance and denial of visits

Until October 2023, Israel permitted the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) to visit Palestinian detainees and regularly provided it with information, in accordance with its obligations under the Third and Fourth Geneva Conventions. But with the onset of the war, Israel withheld ICRC access to prisoners and information, in a measure contrary to international law. In response to a petition  submitted by ACRI, PHRI, HaMoked, and Gisha in February 2024, the state announced its...

Release of detainees to a war zone

During two years of warfare and the decimation of living conditions in the Gaza Strip, Israel persisted in its policy of releasing detainees to Gaza  whose registered address is within the Strip. Detainees who were arrested as undocumented residents in the West Bank or Israel, even after spending extended periods outside Gaza, were released directly into the Strip, despite the clear risks to their safety. This policy constitutes a violation of international law and the principle of...

Lack of accountability, transparency, and oversight

As this section demonstrates, both military and IPS detention facilities operate without transparency and in disregard of Israeli law and regulations as well as international legal norms. The prolonged violation of the most basic rights afforded to detainees and prisoners, resulting in irreversible physical and psychological harm and even death, reflects the absence of internal oversight, minimal attention to external scrutiny, and, on an individual level, a lack of any genuine fear of...