SAFA — Thirteen released Palestinian detainees arrived at Nasser Medical Complex in Khan Younis, southern Gaza, showing signs of severe exhaustion after detention in Israeli prisons, with several describing torture, hunger, prolonged restraint and humiliating treatment.

The detainees were brought to the medical complex through the International Committee of the Red Cross, where relatives gathered for emotional reunions. Some appeared visibly exhausted and pale, while others struggled to describe what they said they had endured in detention.

The released detainees said Israeli forces and armed groups operating alongside them had seized them from their workplaces or while they were moving through Gaza before transferring them into Israeli detention.

Marks of Detention

Released detainee Ahmed Sjei' Al-Ashra still bore marks from the restraints used during his detention. Pointing to visible marks left by shackles, he said prisoners were forced to sleep on metal surfaces and that his hands remained bound for prolonged periods under harsh and humiliating conditions.

Ahmed said Israeli forces detained him after he went searching for wood and plastic among the remains of his destroyed home near al-Saada Hall in Khan Younis, hoping to use the materials to make a fire for cooking.

He stressed that he had been doing nothing more than trying to find a way to survive.

With a voice reflecting both bitterness and relief at his release, Ahmed appealed to the world to help those still held in Israeli prisons.

“Save the prisoners. Their suffering is on your shoulders,” he cried, adding that after what he had endured in detention, freedom felt like living in “paradise.”

After nearly 30 days away, Ahmed wanted nothing more than to return to his family. His first wish, he said, was to see his mother, wife, children, relatives and friends.

He then described a deeply personal wish that, for him, captured the meaning of returning home: to place his mother’s feet on his head as a gesture of love and gratitude, saying her blessing was the greatest thing he could receive after his release.

‘It Was All Suffering’

Released detainee Ali Abu Hammad gave a similar account. He arrived at Nasser Medical Complex exhausted, pale and struggling to speak after spending 35 days in detention.

Ali said he had been working as a custodian at an UNRWA school when armed groups operating alongside Israeli forces raided the school and surrounding area. He and others were taken to a detention site before being handed over to the Israeli military.

When asked about the conditions of his detention, Ali struggled to describe what he had endured.

“It was all suffering... all of it was suffering,” he said.

Ali said his detention was marked by continuous torture before delivering a brief message to the world: “We are oppressed. We are simply an oppressed people.”

Meanwhile, 35-year-old released detainee Rami Yousef Afana stood outside Nasser Medical Complex waiting to reunite with his brother-in-law, Ali Abu Hammad, after having himself experienced Israeli detention.

Rami said he had spent around seven months in Israeli prisons, describing the period as extremely difficult because of what he said were torture, interrogation and deprivation of food and water.

As he waited for his brother-in-law, Rami called on the world to allow Palestinians to live like other peoples, with freedom and dignity and without siege, killing and detention.

Families Reunited, Others Still Waiting

Among the families waiting at Nasser Medical Complex was Shireen Dahliz, who stood with relatives awaiting the return of her husband, Saeed Mahmoud Dahliz.

She was still trying to absorb the news of his release. Israeli forces had detained him 29 days earlier while he was working as a truck driver near the Kerem Shalom crossing.

Shireen said her husband worked as a driver to provide for their children and that she wanted nothing more than to see him return safely to his family.

She repeatedly gave thanks and prayed that every family would soon experience the joy of seeing their loved ones released.

But that joy remained out of reach for others.

At the same hospital, Mohammed Sami Qdeih searched the faces of the returning detainees for his brother, who was not among them.

Mohammed said that whenever he hears that released detainees have arrived at the hospital, he rushes there to ask whether his brother is among them.

Israeli forces detained his brother on January 23, 2024, at a military checkpoint near Nasser Medical Complex.

Mohammed said his brother worked as a driver and was not involved in any other activities, adding that he was among many Palestinians detained at checkpoints during the war.

More than two years have passed since his detention, and his family is still waiting for news that might reassure them about his condition.

Mohammed said the family knows that his brother is being held in Ofer Prison, while his wife and children continue to live with uncertainty, waiting for the day he will return.

The 13 released detainees returned to Gaza carrying accounts of suffering inside Israeli prisons, but also the relief of regaining their freedom and reuniting with their families.

As relatives embraced the exhausted detainees, other families remained at the hospital, searching the faces and names of those returning and waiting for the day when their own loved ones would finally come home.

Source : Safa News