Women, elderly, children and the ill are part of the makeup of the thousands in Israeli prisons

PNN

Nablus / PNN – Among the approximately 10,000 Palestinians in Israeli prisons, 360 are children. Another portion is made up of women. The Palestinian Prisoner Society confirmed today that the occupation authorities have arrested hundreds of thousands of children, women, youth and the elderly since 1967. Since the beginning of the Al Aqsa Intifada in September 2000, 850 women have been arrested. Fifty three remain. According to statistics of the PPS there are now 9,550 Palestinians and Arabs distributed throughout Israeli detention and interrogation centers and jails. Among them are 332 people who have spent more than 15 years in captivity. There are three Palestinians who have been imprisoned more than 30 years. Twelve people have been in for over 25 years and 106 for more than 20. According to the Prisoner Society there are approximately 360 children in Damon, Ofar and Megiddo prisons among others. The number has increased this year. At the end of 2008 there were 338 Palestinian children in Israeli prisons but since January 190 were arrested. Many of those children were released, but not all. Children are often not tried or charged with any crime yet they are not held in the limbo known as Administrative Detention. Those prisoners never know when of if they will be released. Their sentences are generally three or six month periods renewable by the Israeli judges, jailors or prosecutors. Some 560 Palestinians have served over four and a half years in Administrative Detention. There are 28 Palestinians consistently in the Ramle Prison hospital, and about 1,500 waiting for treatment. And then are the legions with teeth and eye problems, chronic headaches and fatigue, digestive problems and sleep disorders. The issue of political prisoners is major for Palestinians and is a focal point when there are negotiations with the Israelis.