Report exposes abuse and neglect of illegally detained prisoners in Israel
NOVANEWS
Marianne Azizi writes:
Between 1996 and 2013 the number of prisoners in Israel has doubled but in 40 per cent of cases the space they occupy is less than 3 square metres.
A report by the public defender shows that only 11 per cent of prisoners have living space of more than 4.5 sq m, a quarter of the inmates are assigned a maximum of 2.9 sq m and more than half of the prisoners (59 per cent ) live in 3 sq m or less. Some 43 per cent of cells hold nine prisoners or more, and 75 per cent have more than four prisoners, though prison and detention regulations stipulate no more than four beds per cell. Across the Western world, the average space per prisoner is 8.8 sq.m.
Less room than for a dog in a kennel
It’s the heat of summer in Israel, and the prisons are full to bursting with...