Special to Milhilard.org

Ramallah March 17th 2026

Adovcate Hassan al-Abadi visited prisoner Samer al-Arabid (abu Mina) in Megiddo Prison, where he has been detained without charge or trial for over six years. Samer was arrested in 2019 and subjected to military interrogation. During this time, the Israeli prison guards subjected him to various forms of torture, including sleep deprivation and beatings with the “owl” (a type of torture device), which resulted in broken ribs. He subsequently fell into a coma and nearly died. He also continues to suffer from hearing loss in his right ear as a result of the torture.

Lawyer Hassan al-Abadi described his visit to Samer on March 16, 2026, saying: “He was accompanied by a group of armed and masked guards, with handcuffs attached, under tight security measures. These are the procedures for visiting prisoners in solitary confinement after October 7.” Prisoners in general, and those in solitary confinement in particular, suffer from torture practices carried out by the prison administration under the directives of the Israeli Minister of National Security, Itamar Ben-Gvir. These practices amount to war crimes and crimes against humanity. It is worth noting that more than 80 prisoners have died in Israeli prisons since October 7th alone.

According to the testimony of lawyer Al-Abadi, Samer Al-Arabid is trying to obtain a Bible from the prison administration, a request frequently made by Christian prisoners, but it is consistently denied. It should be noted that the Israeli prison administration previously rejected another prisoner Rami Fadail’s repeated requests for a Bible, despite the intervention of several human rights and church organizations, all to no avail.

For its part, the Mahd al Mashreq (Cradle of the Levant) Initiative commented, in a Facebook post, on the violations and torture practices to which prisoners are subjected in Israeli prisons, and their deprivation of the most basic religious rights, both Islamic and Christian, especially during the holy month of Ramadan and the Lenten fast, and with the approach of Eid al-Fitr and Easter. This reflects the occupation’s systematic policy of targeting freedom of worship within prisons, which includes preventing prisoners from reciting the call to prayer and performing Taraweeh prayers, failing to provide food on time during the holy month, and preventing visits from religious figures and access to the Bible.

Samer says: “The situation is very, very bad. We’re isolated from the world and its news. There’s immense anxiety hearing the sirens without knowing anything. Everyone has lost weight. The guards have become so arrogant, they’re always trying to gauge what’s happening outside. The food rations are meager. Lately, they’ve allowed one Quran per cell. I’m trying to ask for a Bible. The situation has improved a bit, but the mornings are filled with repression in the section. There are no changes of clothes or winter clothing. Everyone has recovered from scabies, but morale is good, and we remain optimistic.”

There are approximately 9,500 prisoners in the occupation prisons, including 450 children and more than 70 female prisoners, including twelve prisoners from the Christian community: Marwan Maadi, Samer Al-Arbid, Nael Al-Halabi, John Qaqish, Ramez Awad, Rami Fadail, Lian Nasser, Cesar Haddad, Jafri Qawas, Raef Khoury, the child Qais Aqel, and Shadi Khoury, against whom the occupation court issued a sentence of two years and eight months in prison, in addition to a fine of 12,000 shekels. Shadi is scheduled to comply with the unjust and racist decision on March 29.