Martyrdom of Administrative Detainee Muataz Nizam Al-Atrash (21) from Hebron in “Ofer” Prison
21/9/2026 – Union for Justice Foundation
The Union for Justice Foundation, citing the Commission of Detainees and Ex-Detainees Affairs and the Palestinian Prisoners’ Club, reported the martyrdom of administrative detainee Muataz Nizam Mohammad Rabah Al-Atrash (21) from Hebron Governorate, in “Ofer” Prison, where he had been held under administrative detention since 5/10/2025, without charge or trial, under the pretext of the existence of a “secret file.”
According to his family, as well as the legal follow-up of the detainee, Muataz Al-Atrash had not suffered from any known health problems or illnesses prior to his arrest, raising serious questions about the conditions he was subjected to during his detention and the direct responsibility for the deterioration of his condition, culminating in his martyrdom inside the prison.
The Commission of Detainees and Ex-Detainees Affairs and the Palestinian Prisoners’ Club stated, in a statement monitored by the Union for Justice Foundation, that the martyrdom of Muataz Al-Atrash falls within the framework of the genocidal approach that the occupation authorities continue to practice against Palestinian prisoners and detainees, in the context of the ongoing crime of genocide against the Palestinian people, in which prisons and detention centers have constituted one of its main arenas.
The Union for Justice Foundation notes that, with his martyrdom, the number of martyrs among prisoners and detainees since the beginning of the crime of genocide has risen to 92 martyrs, who are only those whose identities the institutions have been able to document, amid the continued crime of enforced disappearance against dozens of detainees and the absence of any reliable information regarding their fate and conditions. The prisoners’ movement is also witnessing, at this stage, one of the bloodiest periods since 1967, as the number of martyrs among prisoners whose identities are known to date has reached 329 martyrs, according to the documented data held by prisoners’ institutions.
The accumulated data monitored by the Union for Justice Foundation confirms that prisoners and detainees are facing systematic genocide through a range of established crimes, including torture, starvation, physical and sexual assaults, medical crimes, denial of necessary healthcare, and the spread of infectious diseases, foremost among them scabies, in addition to policies of isolation, deprivation, and the denial of basic rights, under conditions that lack the minimum requirements for human life.
International Legal Framework
The Union for Justice Foundation considers that these practices constitute grave violations of international humanitarian law and international human rights law. The Fourth Geneva Convention of 1949, relative to the protection of civilian persons in time of war, obliges the occupying power to ensure humane treatment of detainees and prohibits torture and cruel or degrading treatment (Articles 27 and 32), and also prohibits prolonged arbitrary administrative detention without a fair trial. Practices such as deliberate starvation, denial of healthcare, and torture constitute an explicit violation of the 1984 Convention against Torture, which has been ratified by the majority of countries worldwide.
The Union for Justice Foundation points out that these acts may, when committed as part of a widespread or systematic policy or practice, fall within the definition of “crimes against humanity” under Article 7 of the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court, which expressly includes “imprisonment or other severe deprivation of physical liberty in violation of fundamental rules of international law,” “torture,” and “persecution.” The Geneva Conventions oblige all States Parties to prosecute and try those responsible for “grave breaches” wherever they are found, under the principle of universal jurisdiction, regardless of the nationality of the perpetrator or the place where the crime was committed.
Absence of International Oversight and Accountability
The Union for Justice Foundation considers that the martyrdom of Muataz Al-Atrash, at the age of twenty-one, inside the prison further reveals the scale of the risks surrounding the fate of thousands of prisoners and detainees held under harsh conditions, particularly amid the absence of effective international oversight of places of detention and the continued deprivation of human rights and humanitarian organizations of their role in protecting prisoners and monitoring their conditions, foremost among them the International Committee of the Red Cross.
The Union for Justice Foundation, together with the Commission of Detainees and Ex-Detainees Affairs and the Palestinian Prisoners’ Club, holds the occupation authorities fully responsible for the martyrdom of detainee Muataz Al-Atrash.
The Union for Justice Foundation renewed its call on the international community and the international human rights system to take serious and effective measures to stop the ongoing crimes against Palestinian prisoners and detainees, hold those responsible accountable, and prevent these crimes from continuing to be treated as isolated incidents or exceptions.
It also called for an end to the state of impunity that continues to prevent those responsible for crimes committed against prisoners and the Palestinian people from being held accountable, and for concrete international steps to be taken to ensure the protection of prisoners and detainees, guarantee their fundamental rights, and enforce respect for the rules of international law, including those prohibiting torture and cruel and degrading treatment and guaranteeing detainees’ right to life, physical integrity, and healthcare.
The Union for Justice Foundation affirmed that the continued martyrdom of more prisoners and detainees inside prisons, amid the absence of accountability and prosecution, constitutes a direct test of the seriousness of the international system in enforcing the rules of international law and protecting human beings, and requires the transformation of documentation and condemnation into effective measures that put an end to these crimes and ensure that perpetrators do not escape punishment.
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