360 Palestinian Children and 84 Women Spend Eid al-Adha in Israeli Prisons

As Muslims around the world celebrated Eid al-Adha — the Festival of Sacrifice — 360 Palestinian children and 84 women spent the holiday behind bars in Israeli prisons, according to Palestinian prisoner advocacy groups.

The figures, compiled by the Palestinian Commission for Prisoners and Ex-Prisoners, paint a grim picture of the scale of administrative detention and incarceration of Palestinians, including minors. Among the children held are 14-year-olds, some of whom have been in detention for months without trial.

"Eid is supposed to be a time of joy, of family, of togetherness," said a spokesperson for a Palestinian prisoner rights group. "But for these children and women, it is just another day of separation from their families, of confinement, of waiting for a justice system that rarely delivers."

Administrative detention — imprisonment without charge or trial — is one of the most contentious practices of the Israeli military justice system. Human rights groups, including Amnesty International and B'Tselem, have repeatedly called for an end to the practice, particularly as it applies to minors.

The detention of children is a particularly painful issue. Under international law, the detention of minors should be a measure of last resort, used only in the most exceptional circumstances. Yet for Palestinian children in the occupied territories, detention has become a routine reality of life under occupation.

The families of those detained marked Eid with empty chairs at their tables and prayers for their loved ones' return. Their message to the world is simple: childhood should not be spent in a cell.

This is Fatima Al-Rashid for Global1 News, reporting from Ramallah. 🇵🇸