Israel confirms death of Palestinian detainee, nearly two years late

Israel has confirmed, nearly two years after the fact, that a Palestinian detainee from Gaza died in detention, according to the Palestinian Commission of Detainees and Ex-Detainees Affairs.

The Israeli Prison Service informed the commission on Sunday that Ihab Mohammed Abdel Qader Diab, 36, had died while detained. Palestinian officials say the case fits a broader pattern of Israel concealing the fate of detainees held since its genocidal war on Gaza began.

Diab was detained on December 12, 2023, and the commission believes he died around September 18, 2024, after roughly nine months in custody that it alleges involved torture.

Israeli authorities said Diab had an underlying health condition, but his family has rejected this, saying he was healthy and had no illnesses at the time of his detention.

Diab’s death brings the number of Palestinian detainees who have died in Israeli custody since 1967 to 328, including 91 since October 7, 2023 – 53 of them from Gaza, according to the commission.

Gaza’s Prisoners’ Ministry said it holds the Israeli government and prison administration fully responsible, citing evidence of torture, medical neglect and brutal detention conditions.

It called for an international investigation, accountability for those responsible, the return of Diab’s body to his family and disclosure of the fate of all Gaza detainees it says Israel continues to conceal.

Diab’s case surfaces amid growing scrutiny of Israel’s detention system, under which thousands of Palestinians are held without charge or trial.

As of August, Israeli rights group HaMoked said Israel was holding nearly 8,000 “security” prisoners, including 3,198 people in administrative detention – held on secret evidence without formal charges, under orders that can be renewed indefinitely.

Those figures exclude the additional Palestinians detained from Gaza and classified separately by Israel as “unlawful combatants”.