Report: Israeli forces detain over 100 Palestinians since the beginning of Ramadan

Israeli forces have detained more than 100 Palestinians from the occupied West Bank since the start of Ramadan, including women, children, and former detainees, the Palestinian Prisoner's Society said on Sunday.

Since on 18 February, Israeli military increased the tempo of detentions at the start of Ramadan in most West Bank governorates, including Jerusalem, where Israel also banned Ramadan decorations and restricted various other traditional ways of celebrating the Islamic holy month.

Israeli authorities barred thousands of Palestinian worshippers from Al-Aqsa Mosque in occupied East Jerusalem to perform the first Friday prayer of Ramadan, despite them holding previously issued permits.

The arrests were marked by “severe beating, organised acts of terrorism against detainees and their families, along with widespread sabotage and destruction of citizens' homes, and confiscation of vehicles, money, and gold jewelry," the group said.

According to the rights group, more than 9,300 Palestinians are currently held in Israeli prisons, including 350 children.

The organisation said thousands of prisoners have been subjected to a policy of starvation for nearly two and a half years since the beginning of genocide in Gaza, with prison authorities providing rations barely enough to keep them alive.

Prisoners have also been denied the right to perform prayers collectively, and in some detention centres, they have been prevented from accessing the Quran and praying in public.

Palestinian and Israeli human rights organisations warn that dozens of detainees died as result of torture, starvation, and medical neglect.

At least 1,117 Palestinians have been killed and around 11,500 others injured in attacks by the army and illegal settlers in the West Bank since October 2023.