Ramallah, West Bank – Former Palestinian prisoner Ismaeel Taqatqa, 40, succumbed to severe violations of his right to medical care while in the occupation’s prisons, leading to his martyrdom this morning in neighboring Jordan, just five months after he was released. Taqatqa was diagnosed with Leukemia after he was freed on August 29, 2024
The Commission & the PPS hold the occupation fully responsible for the martyrdom of Taqatqa and for the lives of thousands of Palestinians in prisons, detention centers and military camps across the country, facing an unprecedented level of abuse and torture.
From Bethlehem in the southern occupied West Bank, Taqatqa was a husband and father to four children. His family reported that he had no health issues prior to his arrest by occupation forces in March 2024
His health deteriorated rapidly just before his release from Ofer Prison. Occupation authorities transferred him to Hadassah hospital in Jerusalem, where it became clear that he needed a bone marrow transplant. They then proceeded to release him from custody while he was hospitalized, on certain conditions. After that, they blocked his ability to complete his treatment at any hospital inside the 1948-occupied territories, and they also obstructed and delayed his efforts to travel to Jordan for treatment, all of which contributed to his martyrdom this morning
The Commission & the PPS pointed out that the majority of Palestinians being released after the war, suffer from some kind of health problem, requiring many to be hospitalized immediately after their release. Some even emerged with chronic diseases that they did not have prior to their arrest. This is based on medical examinations they underwent post-release and their testimonies
Taqatqa is the latest victim of systematic medical crimes and torture being practiced by the occupation’s brutal prison system against thousands of Palestinians, including those with chronic illnesses. Denial of medical care, particularly against prisoners, is a crime and has been one of the most prominent tools used by the occupation to murder dozens of prisoners since the start of the genocide in Gaza in October 2023
Deprivation of medical care and medical negligence comes hand-in-hand with other severe crimes being practiced against prisoners such as: the right to hygienic products, to a clean environment, to enough clothing, to adequate amounts of food and water, among many other things. Occupation authorities have also allowed horrific diseases, such as scabies, to spread inside the prisons and refuse to properly treat them
Another prominent case similar to Taqatqa’s is that of former prisoner and martyr, 30-year-old al-Farouk Khatib. He was released in December 2023 after four months in detention without trial or charge, with stage five stomach cancer. He lost his life five months later, in a clear pattern of policies aimed at killing Palestinian prisoners
The Commission and the PPS call on the international human rights system to take a stand and enforce an end to the ongoing genocide, a key aspect of which is the crimes being committed against Palestinians in the occupation’s prisons and detention camps
