At least 94 Palestinian prisoners and detainees have died in Israeli custody in less than two years, a well-regarded Israeli human rights group says. A new report by Physicians for Human Rights Israel (PHRI) alleges a practice of "systematic killings and cover-ups". The report covers the period between 7 October 2023, when Hamas launched its deadly attack on Israel, sparking the latest conflict in Gaza, and 31 August 2025. It said fewer than 30 Palestinians died in Israeli custody in the 10 years prior. The Israel Prison Service (IPS) told the BBC it "operates in accordance with the law and under the supervision of official oversight bodies". It said it did not comment on figures or allegations from outside bodies. "All inmates are held according to legal procedures, and their rights including access to medical care, hygiene, and adequate living conditions are upheld by professionally trained staff," the IPS added. Since 7 October 2023, thousands of Palestinians have been detained across Gaza and the West Bank, many without charge. PHRI said it had exposed a deeply concerning pattern of systematic human rights violations committed against Palestinians detained by Israel and classified as "security prisoners". It said this was carried out as part of an official policy implemented by Israeli authorities since the war began. Israeli authorities have stopped providing information about Palestinians in custody to the Red Cross and barred access to detention facilities. PHRI said its report is based on official records and data cross-referenced with forensic reports, information from other human rights groups and efforts to locate specific people, as well as testimony from detainees, their families and lawyers. Its authors say 52 of those who died were being held in military prisons while 42 died in civilian jails run by the IPS. PHRI says the deaths were caused by physical violence, medical neglect, or both. It singles out the policies of Itamar Ben-Gvir, Israel's right-wing national security minister and a key member of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's coalition government. PHRI said that, under Ben-Gvir's control, Israel's incarceration facilities holding Palestinians had "effectively been transformed into sites of torture and abuse". It added daily physical violence was widespread, and that the deprivation of human rights and systematic torture had resulted in the deaths of dozens of Palestinians. The highest number of deaths, 29, occurred at the Sde Teiman military prison in Southern Israel, near Gaza. Five Israeli reservist soldiers have been charged with aggravated abuse and causing serious bodily harm, after a Palestinian prisoner was allegedly beaten and stabbed in the rectum with a sharp object at Sde Teiman in July 2024. Footage emerged showing reserve soldiers taking a detainee aside and surrounding him with riot shields before he was allegedly attacked. The five reservists deny the charges and have not been named. The alleged assault has divided the nation, with some right-wing politicians criticising a military police investigation and even some "right to rape" protests outside the jail. The PHRI report accuses the Israeli authorities of trying to "cover up" and suppress investigations into Palestinian deaths and alleged abuses in custody. In said that, in many cases, detainees' family members were not notified that their relatives had died and access to post-mortems was denied. The report also said there had been a failure to prosecute Israeli prison staff and soldiers. It examined a policy of what it called "forced disappearance", through which thousands of Palestinians have been detained without their families being notified or told where their relatives are being held. PHRI said these "grave violations of international law" had made determining the full scope of Israel's prisoner policy and the fate of the many Palestinians taken into custody extremely difficult, if not impossible. The group estimates the actual number of Palestinians killed could be higher than the number it has been able to document. The IPS said "the claims described do not reflect the conduct or procedures of the Israel Prison Service, and we are not aware of the incidents as presented". It continued: "Every death in IPS custody is examined in accordance with established procedures and referred to the competent authorities as required. "For reasons of privacy, security, and legal limitations, the IPS does not provide personal or statistical details regarding inmates, nor does it comment on individual cases." The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said it operates "in accordance with Israeli and international law", and "detains individuals in Gaza when there is reasonable suspicion of their involvement in terrorist activities". It said that, in some cases, criminal proceedings were then initiated, while in others "preventive detention is enforced to remove individuals from the fighting, in full alignment with the Israeli law and the Geneva Conventions". "Detention orders and their duration are subject to judicial review as required by law," it added. The IDF said it was aware of incidents of detainees dying in custody, but that these included people detained with existing illness or injury, adding each death was investigated by military police. — BBC
