'Israeli' court overturns ban on Red Cross visits to Palestinian detainees
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- 'Israeli' court rules government lacked legal basis for Red Cross ban.
- Decision restores access to Palestinian political prisoners.
- Rights groups welcome ruling, citing concerns over prison conditions.
'Israel's' High Court of Justice has struck down a government policy that barred the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) from visiting Palestinian political prisoners, ruling that the measure lacked support under 'Israeli' and international law.
In a unanimous decision issued Wednesday, the court said the state had failed to provide a sufficient legal justification for the blanket ban, after it was granted multiple opportunities and extensions throughout the proceedings.
The restriction was introduced following the Oct. 7, 2023 attack and suspended a longstanding practice that had allowed Red Cross representatives to visit Palestinian detainees and relay information about their condition.
The court noted that one of the government's main arguments for maintaining the ban was that 'Israeli' captives held in Gaza had been denied access to Red Cross visits. However, the judges said that rationale no longer applied following the release of the remaining captives last year.
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Under the ruling, authorities must once again permit Red Cross visits to Palestinian political prisoners and allow the organization to transmit information regarding their status.
Human rights organizations that petitioned against the policy welcomed the ruling, while criticizing the lengthy legal process.
The Israeli Supreme Court’s ruling to lift the ban on @ICRC visits to Palestinian detainees is a step in the right direction, though long overdue.
— Euro-Med Monitor (@EuroMedHR) June 4, 2026
While oversight mechanisms must be enabled, the judiciary bears responsibility for complicity in legitimising violations in prisons pic.twitter.com/nnRdYo1JJU
Situation in Palestinian prisons
Extremist 'Israeli' National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir, whose office oversees prison policy, has previously defended stricter conditions for Palestinian detainees.
A report released by Physicians for Human Rights–'Israel' said at least 98 Palestinians died in 'Israeli' prisons and military detention facilities between Oct. 7, 2023, and late 2025.
The organization added that many of the deaths were linked to torture, medical neglect, and inadequate access to food, while noting that the actual figure could be higher due to difficulties tracking detainees from Gaza.
Earlier, several Palestinian prisoner rights organizations and legal advocacy groups, said that more than 10,400 Palestinians were being held in 'Israeli' prisons as of June 2025, excluding thousands of detainees from Gaza held in military facilities.
The data indicated that arrests have surged since Oct. 7, 2023, with approximately 17,000 arrests recorded in the occupied West Bank and Jerusalem, alongside thousands more from Gaza.
The figures include 3,562 administrative detainees held without charge or trial, 440 children, 47 women, and 49 journalists.
Rights groups also reported concerns over forced disappearances, detention conditions, and the continued withholding of Palestinian bodies.
