OMM Newsroom
Israeli prison guards shot Palestinian prisoners with rubber or plastic bullets, causing severe injuries including the loss of a testicle and a fractured shin, Haaretz reported Wednesday, citing medical records and testimonies.
Physicians for Human Rights Israel and the Public Committee Against Torture in Israel documented 21 shooting incidents across five Israeli prisons since October 2023, the newspaper said. Most took place in late 2025 and the first half of 2026, often at close range and without prior unrest, according to testimonies gathered by the groups.
The most serious case involved a prisoner at Ketziot Prison in southern Israel, who was shot in the testicle in June. Records from Soroka Hospital showed the organ had been destroyed and had to be surgically removed.
The prisoner told his lawyer that guards had kicked him in the testicles during a strip search a week earlier, leaving him in severe pain. He said he was allowed to see a doctor only two days later.
A week after the beating, members of the Israeli Prison Service’s Masada unit fired rubber bullets into his cell, hitting the previously injured testicle and the area behind his right knee, according to his testimony.
He said guards dragged him about 50 metres while he was bleeding heavily. He eventually received medical attention and was transferred to hospital.
In another case, a prisoner at Ketziot underwent surgery in July for a fractured left shin after being hit by a rubber bullet, according to prison medical records.
A former inmate told Haaretz he was shot at close range in April and denied adequate medical care for 15 days. He underwent surgery after his release.
The rights groups said shootings had taken place inside cells, in prison yards and in areas where inmates waited to meet lawyers.
In August, the organizations urged Israeli authorities to stop using such ammunition against prisoners, particularly at close range and in confined spaces, warning that the injuries could be fatal.
The Israeli Prison Service rejected calls for a blanket ban, saying the use of what it described as less-lethal weapons was guided by operational needs and threat assessments.
Meirav Ben Zeev, a lawyer with the Public Committee Against Torture in Israel, told Haaretz that prisoners were reluctant to report abuse because they feared retaliation. She added that complaints filed in recent years had not led to prosecutions.
About 9,350 Palestinians, including 350 children and 90 women, are being held in Israeli prisons. Palestinian and Israeli rights groups have reported widespread torture, starvation and medical neglect in the prisons, contributing to dozens of deaths in custody.
