The martyrs of the captive movement have risen to 88 since the start of the genocide

The General Authority for Civil Affairs informed both the Commission of Detainees and Ex-Detainees Affairs and the Palestinian Prisoners Club of the death of paramedic Hatem Ismail Rayyan, 59, from the Gaza Strip, inside the Negev Prison, after his arrest on December 27, 2024.

A joint statement issued by the Authority and the Club on Thursday explained that Israeli occupation forces had arrested Rayyan from Kamal Adwan Hospital in northern Gaza during the siege imposed on the Strip, along with his injured son, Muath Rayyan, who remains in detention to this day.

The statement indicated that Rayyan had suffered a stroke shortly before his arrest, according to his family, but insisted on continuing his humanitarian work with the ambulance service until the moment of his arrest. It noted that this period witnessed a widespread campaign of arrests targeting medical personnel, including Dr. Hussam Abu Safiya, who was arrested on the same date. The Commission and the Club affirmed that Ryan’s death comes amidst a surge in prisoner deaths in Israeli prisons, due to policies they described as systematic torture, starvation, medical neglect, physical assaults, and detention in harsh and degrading conditions.

According to the statement, the number of prisoners and detainees who have died in Israeli prisons and detention camps since the start of the war has risen to over 100, with the identities of 88 of them having been announced, including 52 detainees from Gaza. This brings the total number of martyrs in the Palestinian prisoner movement since 1967 to approximately 325, according to documented data from relevant institutions.

The statement also indicated that approximately 50% of the total number of prisoners in Israeli prisons, which exceeds 9,300, are being held without trial, either under administrative detention orders or under the classification of “unlawful combatants.” This includes 3,358 administrative detainees and 1,249 under the latter classification. The Commission and the Prisoners Club held the occupation authorities fully responsible for the martyrdom of Rayan, renewing the call for urgent international human rights action to hold those responsible for the violations committed against prisoners accountable, and to end the state of impunity.