Israeli court bans family visits for Gaza prisoners

The Israeli Supreme Court has opposed a petition that calls for granting permission to the Palestinian residing in the Gaza Strip to visit relatives in Israeli detention camps.

According to an Israel Radio report on Wednesday, the judges at the court ruled that family visits do not fall under the ‘minimum humanitarian needs’ Israel is committed to allow in and out of the Gaza Strip. The petition had been drawn up by the Palestinian-Israeli human rights group, Adalah.

The move comes in parallel with Tel Aviv’s frequent and deliberate snubbing of calls from the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) to allow Palestinian families to visit the 900 Gazan prisoners. Rights groups say the ban amounts to collective punishment.

More than 11,500 Palestinians, including women and children, are currently imprisoned under harsh and life-threatening conditions in Israeli detention centers.