In a statement issued on Tuesday, the association said that child detainees are subjected to harsh detention conditions, including deprivation of adequate clothing and blankets, poor nutrition, severe overcrowding, and deliberate medical neglect—factors that have had serious consequences for their physical and psychological well-being.
Waed also reported the spread of infectious diseases among child prisoners due to the absence of basic hygiene standards and healthcare services, noting that necessary treatments and appropriate medical follow-up are largely unavailable.
The association stressed that such practices amount to a form of systematic torture, particularly when inflicted on children. It held Israeli occupation forces fully responsible for the safety and lives of detained minors and called on international and human rights institutions to uphold their legal and humanitarian obligations by taking urgent action to protect child prisoners and halt ongoing violations.
In parallel, Palestinian prisoner advocacy organizations released a joint report stating that the Israeli prison system is implementing policies of systematic physical and psychological destruction against detained children. The report warned that the escalation targeting both child and adult prisoners has reached unprecedented levels.
According to these organizations, approximately 350 Palestinian children, including two girls, are currently held in Israeli prisons under conditions that violate international standards for the protection of minors. More than 90 of these children are subjected to administrative detention, meaning they are held without formal charges or trial.
Violations against Palestinian children extend beyond detention, the report noted. Military checkpoints in the occupied West Bank routinely prevent children from reaching their schools, while in Gaza, the absence of reconstruction materials and the continued destruction has left children with no access to education whatsoever.
Child detainees also remain deprived of their fundamental rights to legal counsel, family visits, and contact with the International Committee of the Red Cross. Many are held in complete isolation from the outside world.
Rights groups concluded that these practices represent a deliberate and systematic targeting of Palestinian children. They urged the international community to awaken to the scale of the tragedy unfolding, warning that Palestinian childhood is being stripped of basic protections amid the failure of international organizations and relevant conventions to enforce accountability.
Palestinian prisoner institutions have documented extensive testimonies indicating that detained children have been subjected to at least one form of physical or psychological abuse, including beatings, excessive restraints, solitary confinement, and prolonged denial of visits and communication.
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