Israel’s supreme court has ruled that the government has failed to provide Palestinian security prisoners with adequate food for basic subsistence, ordering authorities to improve nutrition. The unanimous decision on Sunday was a rare instance of the country’s highest court ruling against government conduct during the nearly two-year war.
Since the war began, Israel has detained thousands of people from Gaza suspected of links to Hamas, with many released without charge after months in custody. Rights groups have documented widespread abuse in prisons, including insufficient food and healthcare, poor sanitation, and beatings. In March, a 17-year-old Palestinian boy died at an Israeli prison, with starvation cited as a likely cause.
The ruling responded to a petition by the Association for Civil Rights in Israel (ACRI) and Gisha, alleging that a change in food policy after the war caused malnutrition and starvation. National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, who oversees prisons, had previously boasted of reducing conditions to the legal minimum. The court accepted the petition, stating the state must ensure a basic level of existence for prisoners.
Ben-Gvir criticised the ruling, claiming it defends Hamas militants while Israeli hostages suffer. He insisted the policy of minimal conditions would continue. ACRI called for immediate implementation, stating on X that the prison service has turned Israeli prisons into torture camps, adding: 'A state does not starve people.'
