19/11/2023

54/2023

ICHR Condemns Tragic Death of Thaer Abu Asab and Urges International Action
 

Palestine Independent Commission for Human Rights (ICHR) unequivocally places the responsibility for the tragic death of Thaer Sameeh Abu Asab (38 years old) from Qalqilya governorate in the Negev Desert prison on the Israeli occupation authorities. Abu Asab, imprisoned since May 27, 2005, serving a 25-year sentence, becomes the sixth martyr within occupation prisons since October 7th.

As violations and systematic crimes against prisoners and detainees escalate amid the ongoing Israeli aggression and the state of genocide in Gaza, extensive arrest campaigns in the West Bank have targeted around 2800 individuals. They endure harsh conditions violating human dignity, in addition to ill-treatment and torture, escalating to the point of assassinations and executions within prisons and detention centers. This escalation intensifies the gravity of the situation, especially with the impending discussion of the bill "Execution of Palestinian Prisoners" in the Knesset, underscoring the urgent need to address this crime to achieve justice and protect human rights.

As ICHR holds the Israeli authorities directly accountable for the prisoners' deaths, it urges the establishment of an independent international investigation committee to scrutinize the conditions of their detention and subsequent fatalities. Simultaneously, ICHR advocates for empowering the International Committee of the Red Cross to resume visits to Palestinian detainees in occupation prisons, assessing the difficult and harsh conditions imposed on them. ICHR further urges the International Red Cross Committee to fulfill its responsibilities, alleviating the suffering of around six thousand Palestinian detainees facing increased brutality following the revocation of their hard-earned achievements through resilience within prison walls.