The Commission of Detainees and Ex-Detainees Affairs, the Palestinian Prisoner Society, and Addameer Prisoner Support and Human Rights Association issued the joint statement on Aug. 30 to mark the International Day of the Victims of Enforced Disappearances.
The groups said the Israeli regime has withheld detainees’ names, places of detention and health information while preventing contact with their families, lawyers and rights organizations.
They described the practice as a systematic form of enforced disappearance that creates conditions conducive to torture, mistreatment and medical abuse.
The statement also condemned sweeping restrictions on access to Palestinian detainees by lawyers, the International Committee of the Red Cross and human rights groups.
The groups said no precise overall figure is available for Palestinians detained from Gaza because of difficulties documenting cases and determining the fate of detainees and missing people.
They said they have tracked the cases of thousands of Gaza detainees over the past three years, while Israeli authorities have often responded to inquiries by claiming the information is unavailable.
The groups accused the Israeli regime of subjecting Gaza detainees to torture, mistreatment and denial of medical care, saying dozens have died in prisons and detention camps.
At least 53 detainees from Gaza whose identities are known have died in Israeli custody since October 2023, out of 99 Palestinian detainees known to have died during the same period, according to the statement.
The groups said the Israeli regime is also withholding the bodies of Palestinians from Gaza, including detainees who died in prisons and detention facilities.
They called on the UN and international community to act to determine the fate of Palestinian detainees, launch independent investigations into enforced disappearance, torture and deaths in custody, and press the Israeli regime to return withheld bodies.
Since late 2022, far-right Israeli national security minister Itamar Ben-Gvir has pushed for harsher conditions for Palestinian prisoners, including restrictions on food and medical care, while rights groups have documented allegations of torture and prolonged isolation.
Around 9,500 Palestinians are currently held in Israeli prisons, including 94 women and more than 350 children, according to Palestinian prisoners’ rights groups.