DayofPal– The Israeli occupation continues to deprive 14 Palestinian mothers of their freedom, preventing them from embracing their children. These mothers are among 25 Palestinian women held in dire conditions in Israeli prisons.
In a joint statement marking Mother’s Day, the Commission of Detainees Affairs, the Prisoners’ Club, and the Al-Dameer Foundation highlighted that recent months have been among the bloodiest and most brutal against Palestinian women.
The three organizations emphasized that violations against female detainees have escalated systematically, particularly as the ongoing onslaught and genocide against the Palestinian people in Gaza continue in all areas.
The statement added that since the first days of this genocidal war, Israeli forces have carried out mass arrests, detaining tens of thousands of Palestinians, including women and mothers.
According to the statement, the period following October 7, 2023, witnessed the highest number of female arrests in recent history. Israeli forces detained around 500 Palestinian women, including mothers, some of whom were used as captives to pressure male family members into surrendering.
The nightmare of a Palestinian mother begins the moment Israeli soldiers storm her home, usually in the dead of night, ripping her away from her children at gunpoint. Her terrified children’s cries echo as she is dragged away, often in front of them, subjected to deliberate humiliation.
The suffering continues through harrowing transport and brutal interrogations, where Palestinian women endure physical and psychological abuse. Since the start of the genocide, female detainees have been completely denied family visits.
Once arrested, Palestinian women are transferred to Israeli interrogation centers, where they face cruel and inhumane treatment. Detainees are often forced to stand for hours, deprived of sleep and food, and subjected to constant threats of violence in all forms.
Additionally, many are denied access to lawyers, deepening their suffering and leaving lasting scars on their mental and physical well-being.
The majority of Palestinian female prisoners are held in Damon Prison, notorious for its inhumane conditions.
Since October 7, 2023, their suffering has worsened significantly. In the following weeks, female prisoners were subjected to relentless assaults, including solitary confinement and violent abuse by Israeli suppression units.
A cruel starvation policy was also imposed on them, barring detainees from purchasing food from the prison canteen and providing them with meager, poor-quality meals.
Prison overcrowding has further intensified their hardship, forcing many women to sleep on the cold, hard floor due to a severe shortage of clothing and blankets. Some have had to endure the freezing temperatures in the same clothes they were arrested in, for months on end.
For decades, medical neglect has been a deliberate tool of oppression against Palestinian detainees. Female prisoners suffering from chronic illnesses or injuries sustained during arrest are routinely denied essential medical care.
Many are refused access to necessary medications, and some endure deliberate delays in treatment, worsening their health conditions.
Among the imprisoned mothers is at least one pregnant woman in her third month. A mother of two young children, she suffers from deteriorating health due to intentional medical neglect.
Like other female detainees, she is denied essential medical examinations and prenatal care, putting both her life and her unborn child at risk.
This is the daily reality for Palestinian mothers behind bars, a reality of pain, separation, and systematic cruelty, imposed by an occupation that spares no one, not even the most vulnerable.
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