Palestinian groups condemn Ben-Gvir’s threats to jailed prisoner
Groups condemned footage posted by Israel’s national security minister showing him telling jailed Hamas figure Hassan Salama he wanted him killed and executed.
Palestinian authorities and groups have condemned Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir after he posted footage of himself threatening jailed Hamas figure Hassan Salama in his cell.
Ben-Gvir posted the video on X on Sunday and said it had been filmed two weeks earlier. It shows him telling Salama: “I want to kill you. … I want you executed.”
Raed Abu al-Hummus, head of the Palestinian Commission of Detainees and Ex-Detainees Affairs, called the footage degrading. He also described conditions inside Israeli prisons as “organised terrorism”.
Hamas said the threat signalled possible new crimes against Palestinian detainees. The Palestinian Prisoners Media Office called the incident bullying and said Israeli authorities were responsible for Salama’s safety.
The report says Salama has been imprisoned for 30 years and is serving multiple life sentences for his role in Hamas-orchestrated attacks in 1996, including bus bombings.
Israel’s Knesset approved legislation in March allowing the death penalty for Palestinian prisoners in certain cases. The report provided no response from Israeli prison authorities to the groups’ statements.
