Israel confirms death of Palestinian detainee Ihab Diab amid allegations of torture and neglect

The Israeli Prison Service has confirmed the death of Ihab Mohammed Abdel Qader Diab, a 36-year-old Palestinian detainee from Gaza, nearly two years after his initial detention. The notification was delivered to the Palestinian Commission of Detainees and Ex-Detainees Affairs on Sunday, concluding a period of uncertainty regarding the fate of the detainee who was arrested on December 12, 2023.

According to the commission, Diab is estimated to have died around September 18, 2024, following approximately nine months in custody. While Israeli authorities have attributed the death to an underlying health condition, Diab’s family and Palestinian officials have firmly rejected this explanation. They allege that Diab was healthy at the time of his arrest and that his death was the result of torture and medical neglect during his imprisonment.

Gaza’s Prisoners’ Ministry has declared the Israeli government and prison administration fully responsible for the circumstances leading to Diab’s death. The ministry cited evidence of torture, medical neglect, and brutal detention conditions, calling for an international investigation and accountability for those involved. Additionally, the ministry has demanded the return of Diab’s body to his family and the disclosure of the fate of other detainees whose whereabouts remain concealed.

The confirmation of Diab’s death adds to a growing tally of fatalities in Israeli custody. The Palestinian Commission of Detainees and Ex-Detainees Affairs reported that Diab’s death brings the total number of Palestinian detainees who have died in Israeli custody since 1967 to 328. Of these, 91 deaths have occurred since October 7, 2023, with 53 of those being detainees from Gaza.

This case emerges against the backdrop of intensified scrutiny regarding Israel’s detention framework. As of August, the Israeli rights group HaMoked reported that Israel was holding nearly 8,000 “security” prisoners. This figure includes 3,198 individuals held in administrative detention, a practice that allows for indefinite detention on secret evidence without formal charges. These statistics do not include Palestinians detained from Gaza, who are classified separately by Israeli authorities as “unlawful combatants.”