2023-12-21 19:42:01
TEL AVIV, Israel (AP) — Israeli police said Thursday they are investigating 19 prison guards in the death of a 38-year-old Palestinian prisoner in their custody.
Thaer Abu Assab showed “serious signs of violence” on his body when he was found, according to the advocacy group Palestinian Prisoners Club. He died on November 18 in Ketziot prison in the southern Negev Desert. Arrested in 2005, Abu Assab was serving a 25-year sentence for attempted murder.
The Palestinian Prisoners Club demanded an investigation with an autopsy of the body. Police initially said it was difficult to identify the guards involved because they were wearing helmets.
Police announced the investigation Thursday as the gag order expired. The Israeli Prison Service said it was cooperating with the investigation.
According to the Prisoners’ Club, there are around 7,800 Palestinians in Israeli prisons. Hundreds of them have been detained since October 7, when a Hamas attack in southern Israel sparked the current war.
Activists say there are a record number of so-called administrative detainees, who can be held without charge or trial.
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