SAFA — A Palestinian woman has given birth to a baby girl while held in an Israeli prison after spending about six months in administrative detention without charge or trial, renewing concerns over the treatment of pregnant Palestinian detainees.

Dana Joudeh, 35, from Iraq al-Tayeh near Nablus, gave birth on September 14 while under the authority of Damon Prison. She had been arrested while pregnant and subsequently placed under administrative detention.

Joudeh and her newborn daughter were released shortly after the birth and transferred to a hospital in Ramallah for medical care.

The Palestinian Commission of Detainees and Ex-Detainees Affairs held Israeli authorities responsible for the health and safety of Joudeh and her child, accusing the prison administration of denying her adequate healthcare during her pregnancy.

The Commission described her continued detention while pregnant and the circumstances surrounding the birth as serious violations of international standards.

Joudeh’s case has also heightened concerns over other pregnant Palestinian women who remain in Israeli custody, including Manar Karaja, 28, from Ramallah, and Baraa Abu Khdeja from Tulkarem.

Palestinian prisoner groups have raised particular concerns about Karaja’s health, reporting inadequate prenatal care, poor nutrition and severe hygiene problems during her detention. Earlier reports said her weight had fallen significantly during pregnancy and that she had gone weeks without a proper pregnancy examination.

Former detainees have also described overcrowded and overheated conditions for pregnant prisoners, inadequate food, poor hygiene and limited access to medical treatment.

Karaja’s family says Joudeh’s experience has intensified fears that she could also reach childbirth while still imprisoned.

“After hearing about Dana giving birth in prison, our fears have grown,” her husband, Musab Zalloum, said. “We dread her going through that same harrowing experience and worry deeply about her health and the baby’s.”

Karaja, a mother of two young children, is being held under administrative detention, a system that allows Israel to detain Palestinians without filing criminal charges or putting them on trial, with detention orders subject to renewal.

Her case comes amid broader concerns over conditions facing Palestinian women in Israeli prisons. Palestinian prisoner organisations have documented reports of medical neglect, inadequate food, poor hygiene, physical abuse, isolation and restrictions on basic necessities.

Rights groups have repeatedly called for adequate medical care and special safeguards for pregnant detainees, stressing that international standards require authorities to take account of the particular healthcare needs of pregnant women in custody.

Joudeh has now left Israeli custody with her newborn daughter, but her experience has deepened fears for the pregnant Palestinian women who remain behind bars as their pregnancies advance.