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Israeli Soldiers raid Ashkelon prison, assault captives

Ma’an – 01/07/2011

HEBRON — Israeli forces raided Ashkelon prison on Thursday and attacked Palestinian detainees, a rights group said.

Palestinian detainees had protested the prison administration’s decision to close a section of the jail to bring criminal prisoners, the Palestinian Prisoners’ Society said.

The Nahshon and Metzada units of the Israeli Prison Service raided the jail, firing tear-gas canisters and beating detainees with batons and hoses, the society said in a statement.

The group described the attack as “barbaric and vicious.”

Head of the society Amjad An-Najjar said silence over the plight of prisoners was “encouraging the Israeli authorities to commit more violations of international law.”

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced on June 23 that he had instructed the Israeli Prison Service to toughen conditions for Palestinian detainees to pressure Hamas to release captured Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit.

“I’m not going to detail the measures, but I can tell you the party’s over,” Netanyahu said.

July 1, 2011 Posted by | Subjugation - Torture | 1 Comment