Qatari PM accuses Israel of ‘torturing and mistreating’ Palestinian prisoners

Qatari Prime Minister Mohammed Abdulrahman Al-Thani calls out Israel’s treatment of Palestinian prisoners, taking particular issue with videos posted by far-right National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir in which he is seen mocking inmates.

Al-Thani is asked during an onstage interview at the Council on Foreign Relations in New York City why Israel hasn’t released prominent security prisoner Marwan Barghouti, who is seen as a unifying figure among Palestinians. Barghouti is currently serving five cumulative life terms for planning attacks during the Second Intifada that killed five civilians. He has denied the charges and rejected the Israeli court’s jurisdiction.

The Qatari premier says this is a question for Israel, but that “there are tens or hundreds of Marwan Barghoutis in Israeli prisons who have been prosecuted and tortured and mistreated, and no one is talking about it.”

He notes that many of the Palestinians currently in Israeli jails are being held without trial and he calls for their release, apparently referring to the several thousand under administrative detention. Without detailing what they have been accused of, Al-Thani claims that Israel has refused to release certain prisoners who are very ill “because of the symbolism of their names.”

“This is something that needs to be addressed. Israel should be held accountable for what’s happening on their prisons with the Palestinians,” the Qatari premier continues.

“I don’t know if any of you here watch the videos that Minister Ben Gvir is doing [of] the prisoners over there. It is very inhumane, and I think that this should never be acceptable for anyone in today’s world,” he adds.