Their deaths were confirmed in responses sent by the Israeli military to Palestinian human rights organizations, which provided only the dates of death without further details.
Three more Palestinian detainees from the Gaza Strip have been announced dead in Israeli detention, raising the death toll to 69 since October 2023, prisoner rights organizations said on Thursday.
Breaking: Prisoner institutions: We have received a notification from the Israeli prison administration of the death of three newly detained prisoners from Gaza under torture. They are: Ayman Abdel Hadi Qudeih (56), Bilal Talal Salameh (24), and Mohammed Ismail Al-Astal (46).
— Ramy Abdu| رامي عبده (@RamAbdu) May 15, 2025
According to the organizations, the three detainees have been identified as follows:
- Ayman Abdel-Hadi Qudeih, aged 56. Qudeih was arrested on October 7, 2023, and martyred five days later on October 12, 2023.
- Bilal Talal Salama, aged 24. He was arrested during displacement from Khan Younis in March 2024, and died on August 11, 2024.
- Mohammad Ismail Al-Astal, aged 46, Al-Astal was arrested on February 7, 2024, and died on May 2, 2025.
“With these latest cases, the number of announced martyrs of the Palestinian prisoner movement since the beginning of the Israeli aggression on October 7 has risen to 69 martyrs, 44 of whom are from Gaza,” a statement from the Prisoners’ Media Office said, citing the groups.
The total number of prisoners who have died in detention “since 1967 has now reached 306,” the statement noted.
Circumstances of Death Not Provided
Their deaths were confirmed in responses sent by the Israeli military to Palestinian human rights organizations, which provided only the dates of death without further details regarding the circumstances of their deaths, the official Palestinian news agency WAFA reported.
Three Palestinian detainees abducted from Gaza during the Israeli assault have been announced dead in Israeli prisons, amid reports of torture and mistreatment.https://t.co/vzm5Gl5ZdN
— Quds News Network (@QudsNen) May 15, 2025
The organizations – the Commission for Detainees and Ex-Detainees Affairs, the Palestinian Prisoners Society, and Al-Dameer Association for Human Rights – condemned the deaths as part of a broader pattern of systemic abuse.
“These deaths are another addition to the record of atrocities committed by the Israeli system, which continues to carry out organized crimes against detainees, amounting to acts of ongoing genocide,” the groups said in a joint statement.
‘Deadliest Chapter’
The organizations emphasized that this period marks the deadliest chapter in the history of the Palestinian prisoner movement, especially amid Israel’s ongoing concealment of the identities of many Gaza detainees who have died in custody.
They stressed that the plight of Palestinian detainees from Gaza has revealed “unprecedented levels of violence and atrocities,” including reports of torture, starvation, medical neglect, and sexual abuse.
‘Shattered Futures’ – PCHR Documents Torture of Gaza Detainees
According to the organizations, testimonies from Gaza detainees in recent months have been among the most harrowing, detailing a “moment-by-moment” experience of abuse.
The statement criticized the Israeli military for its lack of transparency, noting that it often provides inconsistent or delayed information about detainees’ fates, WAFA reported. In some cases, organizations have been forced to go to court to obtain basic details.
‘Slow Killing’
The organizations accused Israel of carrying out systematic “slow killing” practices in its detention facilities, citing the spread of disease, such as scabies, as a method of torture and neglect. They stated that medical negligence, torture, and starvation are central causes behind the rising death toll.
Inside the Torture Cells: How Israel is ‘Slowly Killing’ Palestinian Resistance Leaders
Holding Israel fully responsible for the deaths, the organizations renewed their call for an independent international investigation into the deaths of detainees and for the international community to take effective measures to hold Israeli leaders accountable.
They called on the international human rights system to reclaim its role and end the exceptional impunity enjoyed by Israel, which, they said, has so far been shielded from meaningful accountability despite ongoing war crimes.
A Palestinian detainee who arrived in Gaza this morning described the suffering and conditions inside Israeli prisons.
“We are subjugated to torture….no food, no water and no medical treatment.”
Their eyes and tears are just heartbreaking… pic.twitter.com/MUk2UQWRMJ
— Suppressed News. (@SuppressedNws) April 22, 2025
The Prisoners’ Media Office statement noted that as of early May 2025, the number of prisoners in Israeli jails has surpassed 10,100, including 37 women, over 400 children, 3,577 administrative detainees, and 1,846 prisoners from Gaza, who are classified by the Israeli army as “unlawful combatants.”
(PC, WAFA, AA)
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