introDUCtion
2023 was a challenging year for human rights work in Israel in general, and for
the fight against torture in particular. The ultra-right-wing Israeli government
introduced a range of legislation and attempts to dismantle democratic safeguards
and standards by its ‘judicial reform’. These attempts and the anti-democratic
rhetoric, especially by extreme right-wing National Security Minister Itamar Ben
Gvir, continue well into 2024. Human rights of Palestinians in the oPt, specifically
those held in Israeli prisons, were further compromised, including by the National
Security Minister, who vowed to aggravate the conditions for Palestinian security
prisoners and from early 2023 on introduced a range of hostile and radical policies
that violate prisoners’ rights. Finally, the Hamas-led attacks on Israel on October
7th, 2023, which included the killing of 1200 civilians and soldiers, multiple acts
of torture and ill-treatment, and the taking of hundreds of hostages, and the
devastating war on Gaza that followed – shook the world around us. The Israeli
tragedy, which triggered emotions of fear, hatred and vengeance, coupled with
inciting and de-humanizing rhetoric against Palestinians by far-right leaders, and
a pre-existing culture of immunity for perpetrators of torture – paved the way for a
human rights crisis in Israeli prisons and detention sites unprecedented in scale
and gravity; more on that below