Knesset committee approves request for prisoners to be held overnight without beds

The Knesset National Security Committee approves the government’s request to extend emergency provisions allowing for prisoners to be held overnight without a bed.

Since the Hamas-led October 7, 2023, attack, Israel has seen a major uptick in its prison population, causing overcrowding that the government has insisted can be solved only by loosening regulations governing prison conditions.

The number of inmates held in Israeli prisons shot up by around 8,360 since the start of the Gaza war, putting the total figure at 24,715. Among them are 11,115 Palestinian security prisoners, held for committing what Israel classifies as security offenses — crimes ranging from terror attacks to publishing what Israel says is incendiary content online.

The main reason for the spike is the influx of Palestinians jailed for illegally residing in Israel, says Israel Prison Service official Tamar Dori. Before October 7, illegal residents caught for the first time were deported, but police have changed their policy to pursue arrest regardless of suspects’ criminal past.

Currently there are 2,500 Palestinians detained as criminals for residing illegally in Israel, according to the prison official.