Shooting inside cells: Two human rights organizations document prisoner testimonies of serious violations
Physicians for Human Rights and the Public Committee Against Torture documented 22 testimonies from Palestinian prisoners who said prison guards fired rubber or plastic bullets at them from close range inside cells. Injuries include fractures and testicle amputation. The organizations demand an immediate halt.
Physicians for Human Rights and the Public Committee Against Torture in Israel documented 22 testimonies from prisoners and detainees, mostly Palestinians, who reported that prison guards fired projectiles described as rubber, plastic, or sponge bullets at them from close range inside cells. Most testimonies were collected over the past year. Medical records reveal a 45-year-old prisoner suffered testicle amputation after being shot in Ofer Prison, and another sustained a leg fracture. Prisons involved include Ofer, Ganot, Ktzi'ot, Gilboa, Megiddo, Nitzan, and Eshal. The organizations called on the Attorney General and Prison Service officials to immediately halt the practice and disclose the types of ammunition used. The Prison Service admitted using 'less lethal means' but refused to disclose their nature. Muhannad Abu Ghosh warned of unprecedented escalation, and attorney Meirav Ben Ze'ev called the response a contempt for prisoners' bodies.