At least 10 Palestinian women taken from Gaza by Israel before truce, prisoner says

Israeli forces arrested at least 10 Palestinian females from the Gaza Strip and transported them to jail two days before the truce between Israel and Hamas was reached, according to a freed female prisoner.

Lama Khater, a writer who was released with the sixth batch of Palestinian prisoners as part of the truce agreement, said the women had been arrested by Israeli forces while they were fleeing from northern to southern Gaza. 

The prisoners came from Jabalia and Sheikh Radwan, Khater said, adding that Israel appeared to target mothers, forcing them to separate from their children.

"We saw the way Israeli officers brought in female hostages from Gaza,” Khater told Al Jazeera Arabic. “They had their scarves removed, and were given ‘war prisoner’ clothing…they were blindfolded and they were confined and isolated from the rest of the prisoners."

Khater also said that Israeli guards threatened to rape her and burn her children. Middle East Eye previously reported that Khater had been threatened with rape by 20 Israeli soldiers.

“Today, the male and female prisoners are living in what can be considered as forced starvation, in complete isolation,” she said. 

“We were all isolated in our rooms, and were not allowed to go outside except for 15 to 30 minutes  in the bathrooms."