Human rights advocates have warned that conditions inside Israeli detention facilities have deteriorated sharply during the genocidal war on Gaza, with new testimonies indicating widespread mistreatment of Palestinian prisoners. In a detailed submission to an international oversight body, lawyers and medical professionals reported that safeguards once designed to protect detainees have been effectively dismantled, allowing serious abuses to take place without monitoring or accountability.

According to the findings, detainees are being held for prolonged periods under a legal designation that bypasses the protections normally afforded to prisoners of war. Individuals can be kept without charge, denied legal representation and cut off from family contact, while many are kept in solitary confinement. The report states that decisions taken by senior officials have enabled practices that violate international humanitarian standards, with judicial institutions offering little effective oversight.

Sources familiar with the situation noted that prisoners frequently face harsh living conditions, including inadequate access to medical care and basic necessities. Reports also reference patterns of physical mistreatment, psychological pressure and deliberate humiliation. Detainees describe being deprived of sufficient food, denied proper hygiene and prevented from accessing independent medical assessments, contributing to a rise in preventable illnesses. A number of unexplained deaths in custody have also been documented since the start of the genocidal war, raising concerns about the lack of transparency surrounding detainees from Gaza whose whereabouts remain unknown.

The report further highlights a surge in administrative detention orders, which allow the authorities to hold individuals indefinitely without trial. Before the genocidal war, the number of Palestinians held under this system was already high; it has since more than tripled. Lawyers say these measures create an environment in which abuses can flourish, as detainees are left with limited avenues to challenge their treatment or conditions of confinement.