Following a series of testimonies by prisoners and their lawyers, including statements by representatives of the IPS and the Minister of National Security, the Association for Civil Rights in Israel (ACRI) and Gisha petitioned the High Court of Justice (Hebrew) on April 4, 2024, demanding that security prisoners be provided with food in the quantity and composition suitable for maintaining their health and identical to that supplied to the other prisoners.
Testimonies of prisoners and security detainees attached to the petition indicate that since October 7, 2023, the IPS have been deploying a policy of starvation towards Palestinian prisoners and detainees. Recently released prisoners testified that they suffered from constant and extreme hunger and very poor quality of food. Among the testimonies presented in the petition were those of a diabetic prisoner who ate toothpaste to raise blood sugar, and of prisoners who lost tens of kilograms in weight in recent months.
The petition argued that the food reduction policy amounts to starvation and torture, and contravenes Israeli and international law. It violates the constitutional right of security prisoners to dignity and health, constitutes a policy of collective punishment, and violates the IPS's obligation to provide detainees in its custody with appropriate prison conditions. The petitioning organizations noted that the state's obligations towards those in its custody are permanent and do not change due to war crimes and crimes against humanity committed by Hamas against Israel.
On June 26, 2024, the state's response to the petition was submitted, after many requests to postpone and about an hour before the scheduled hearing. In response, it was reported that after the petition was filed, another change was made to the menu and portions of processed food. The state did not present the legal basis for distinguishing between prisoners, regarding food, nor a law authorizing the minister or the IPS to reduce food.
Shortly after, ACRI received a letter from the advisor to the Minister of National Security. The letter stated that the Minister's position was supposed to be submitted by the State Prosecutor's Office, but was not submitted at the last minute. The Minister's letter stated that he was the one who made the decision to reduce food, as part of his policy to worsen the conditions of the security prisoners and create deterrence.
A hearing on the petition was held on June 26, 2024, after which a decision was made that both parties must return to submit their position to the court within a week. The state asked for an extension to bring the matter before the Prime Minister, and the court ordered the State to submit an update by August 6, 2024.
HCJ 2858/24 Association for Civil Rights in Israel v. Minister of National Security
Attorney: Anne Suciu, Roni Pelli
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