PA must end arbitrary detention, torture, ill-treatment of Palestinians, UN rights office demands

Jerusalem Post/Middle EastIndividuals, including children, are being held by the PA security force despite court orders for their release, the UN office confirmed. Follow us on GooglePALESTINIAN AUTHORITY President Mahmoud Abbas of Fatah (L) and Hamas politburo member Khalil al-Hayya.(photo credit: Nasser Nasser/Pool/Yamam al Shaar/Reuters)ByDANIELLE GREYMAN-KENNARDJULY 26, 2026 12:16The Palestinian Authority must end its continued use of arbitrary detention, torture, and other forms of ill-treatment against Palestinians, particularly journalists, dissidents, and political activists, under the pretext of “security reasons,” the UN Human Rights Office demanded last week.The office noted that many of the dozens of Palestinians held arbitrarily or unlawfully by the Palestinian Authority were detained under a law that the Palestinian Supreme Constitutional Court had declared unconstitutional.Although the announcement did not name the law, the UN office is likely referring to the Jordanian Crime Prevention Law of 1954 (Law No. 7 of 1954), which the court deemed unconstitutional in 2023. The law allows administrative governors, who report directly to the Interior Ministry, to hold individuals in administrative detention without standard criminal procedures or judicial oversight.The office also confirmed multiple instances in which individuals, including children, were held by security forces despite court orders mandating their release.Palestinian police officers keep guard ahead of the visit of Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas, in Jenin in the West Bank July 12, 2023. (credit: RANEEN SAWAFTA/REUTERS)Torture, ill-treatment must stop 'immediately'Concerningly, Palestinian detainees in the detention centers reported experiencing forms of torture and ill-treatment, including being positioned in painful stress positions, severe beatings and whippings, and prolonged solitary confinement.Several also complained of being hung in the ‘Shabeh’ position, where individuals are suspended with their hands shackled behind their backs from the ceiling by their wrists for days at a time.“The Palestinian authorities must immediately stop all forms of torture and other ill-treatment of detainees and all arbitrary or unlawful detention. Those deprived of liberty must be treated with humanity and respect for their dignity. Among others, they must be provided with regular outdoor access, sufficient living space to prevent overcrowding, and adequate food, medical care, clothing, and sanitation facilities and hygiene conditions,” the office demanded. “They must also be entitled to challenge the lawfulness of their detention before a court.”Follow us on Google