Hostages Return, Prisoners Released Amid Ongoing Conflict
Following the October 7, 2023 Hamas attack on Israel and the subsequent kidnapping of approximately 250 people, a recent exchange saw the last known living Israeli hostages held by Hamas returned to Israel. This progress occurred against a backdrop of escalating tensions and a significant increase in Palestinian arrests by Israeli authorities in Gaza, the West Bank, and East Jerusalem, citing security concerns.
The release of the Israeli hostages coincided with the freeing of palestinian prisoners held by Israel. As of late 2023/early 2024, over 11,000 Palestinians were detained in Israeli prisons, a record number according to the Israeli human rights institute HaMoked. A particularly concerning aspect of this detention is the use of administrative detention, a practice allowing military justice to hold individuals without charge or trial, with indefinite renewal of imprisonment. Currently, over 3,500 Palestinians are held under this administrative detention regime.
As the start of the war in Gaza, conditions for Palestinian prisoners have reportedly deteriorated.Israeli NGOs and the United Nations have documented instances of ill-treatment, torture, and deaths in detention – with reports in the Israeli press indicating around fifty such cases.
Le monde’s International Department Head,Stéphanie Le Bars,explained the publication’s terminology choices regarding the situation: “Since the terrorist attack of October 7,2023 by Hamas in Israel and the kidnapping of 250 people,brought by Palestinian armed groups into the Gaza Strip… we talk about “hostages” Israelis and “prisoners” or from “detainees” Palestinians.” She clarified that the Israelis and foreigners kidnapped on October 7th are considered hostages in the literal sense – individuals whose fate and release are contingent upon concessions from their captors, and whose conditions and whereabouts remained largely unknown for two years.
In contrast, while access to information is often limited due to challenges faced by families, lawyers, and human rights organizations, the majority of Palestinian prisoners are held in known detention facilities.
