Freed Palestinian prisoner Mansour Al-Shawwa has shared harrowing details of the torture he endured at the hands of Israeli occupation forces following his arrest while fleeing northern Gaza via the Netzarim corridor.

The accounts of Gazan detainees recounting their treatment in detention camps after the war reveal some of the most brutal policies and crimes. The “Sde Teiman” detention camp has become a notorious symbol of torture, highlighting the grave violations committed against prisoners.

In a press interview, Al-Shawwa, who is deaf and has special needs, communicated his experiences through sign language. He described being detained at the Netzarim military checkpoint while fleeing with two deaf friends. “The Israeli soldiers directed us towards their tanks, but we didn’t realise we were being targeted because we couldn’t hear their commands,” he said.

Al-Shawwa recounted that Israeli soldiers nearly opened fire on them before arresting and transferring them to the “Sde Teiman” detention camp. The soldiers reportedly refused to believe the trio’s claims of deafness, which exacerbated their mistreatment.

“We were treated like any other prisoner without a disability,” Al-Shawwa explained, “subjected to prolonged interrogations, severe beatings, and attack dogs unleashed on us, scavenging our bodies.”

The lack of accommodations for Al-Shawwa’s disability further compounded his suffering. “I rely on sign language to communicate, but my hands were shackled the entire time, causing injury to my fingers and preventing me from expressing myself to the soldiers,” he said.

Al-Shawwa’s testimony sheds light on the inhumane treatment faced by Palestinian detainees, particularly those with disabilities, and raises urgent questions about the practices in Israeli detention camps.