Israeli occupation forces have subjected Palestinian prisoners to systematic medical negligence policies that have resulted in hard-to-treat chronic diseases, and in some cases, death.
In this context; the ex-prisoner Farouk Al-Khatib, 30, from Abu Shkhidim town of Ramallah in the central West Bank, died late Sunday, in the Istishari Hospital in Ramallah, as a result of the medical negligence policy he was subjected to during his detention before being released on December 20, 2023.
Al-Khatib Khatib had been kidnaped in August 2023 and soon later administratively jailed for four months, but he was released earlier on December 20 due to his serious health condition.
His family confirmed that their son Farouk did not suffer from any chronic diseases before his recent arrest, expressing their shock over his last appearance, and did not believe, at the time, that their son had reached this dangerous health stage just within four months.
Al-Khatib suffered from a number of crimes in addition to the medical crime that ultimately resulted in his death. He was beaten severely in his final hours of detention, just like other prisoners, and the occupation authorities persisted in their crime of killing him by keeping him in administrative detention despite having a serious medical condition under the guise of a “secret file.”
After being moved from Ofer Prison, Al-Khatib was held in Nafha Prison. This was the longest he had been held there before being moved to Soroka Hospital and then the so-called Ramla Prison Clinic. Since the occupation system imposed retaliatory measures on the prisoners, the prison administration purposefully hindered the legal teams’ visit. These teams faced significant challenges in implementing and monitoring the inmates following the genocide on the Gaza Strip.
It should be mentioned that detainees released from occupation prisons in grave and challenging health conditions are not limited to the case of Farouk Al-Khatib. The systematic medical crimes against sick prisoners over the years resulted in many of them passing away soon after they were released.
