New York - Brussels: Europe and the Arabs
Two independent UN human rights experts described the mass arbitrary detention of Palestinians by Israel as "cruel" and "inhuman" and stressed the need for accountability in the case of Mr. Khader Adnan's death while in custody. According to the United Nations news bulletin, which we received a copy of by e-mail on Thursday morning, it also stated, “Mr. Adnan, 45 years old, died in his cell on Tuesday morning after a hunger strike that lasted nearly three months in protest of” Israel’s widespread policy The arbitrary arrest of Palestinians in abhorrent conditions and in the absence of fair trial guarantees.
According to the United Nations Daily Bulletin, a statement was issued by the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Palestinian territory occupied since 1967, Ms. Francesca Albanese, and Ms. Tlalang Mofuking, the Special Rapporteur on the right of every human being to the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health.
The two UN experts said: “Khader Adnan went on hunger strike shortly after his arrest on 5 February 2023 by the Israeli authorities on terrorism charges. Despite the serious deterioration of his health, the Israeli authorities refused to release Adnan or transfer him to hospital, and continued to detain him. in the prison hospital facility, reportedly without providing adequate health care.”
The Special Rapporteurs noted that Mr. Adnan had been arrested at least 12 times in the past, spent nearly eight years in prison, most of them under administrative detention, and went on hunger strike five times.
"Testimony of an inhumane policy"
The two experts added, "Khader Adnan's death is a tragic testament to Israel's cruel and inhumane detention policy and practices, as well as the failure of the international community to hold Israel accountable for the cruel violations committed against Palestinian prisoners."

According to the statement, Israel currently holds approximately 4,900 Palestinians in its prisons - including 1,016 administrative detainees who are held indefinitely without trial or charge and based on confidential information.
The number of administrative detainees in Israeli detention facilities has reached its highest level since 2008, despite repeated condemnations by international human rights bodies and recommendations to Israel to immediately end this practice.
Many Palestinian prisoners have resorted to hunger strikes in recent years to protest the "brutal Israeli detention practices".
In this regard, the two experts said: “We cannot separate Israel's detention policies from the colonial nature of its occupation, which aims to control and subjugate all Palestinians in the territories that Israel wants to control. The systematic practice of administrative detention amounts to a war crime of depriving protected persons deliberately deprived them of their right to a fair and regular trial.”
The two Special Rapporteurs insisted on the need for the international community to hold Israel accountable for its illegal actions in the occupied territory more than ever before, and to "stop the normalization of war crimes, which have become a daily reality in the lives of the Palestinians."
They asked, "How many lives must be lost before even the most basic measure of justice can be served in the Occupied Palestinian Territory?"
It is noteworthy that the special rapporteurs and independent experts are appointed by the Human Rights Council in Geneva, which is an intergovernmental body responsible for the promotion and protection of human rights around the world. Rapporteurs and experts are charged with studying human rights situations and submitting reports on them to the Human Rights Council. It should be noted that this position is ceremonial, and these experts are not considered employees of the United Nations and do not receive remuneration for their work.