Israel throws dozens of Palestinians in detention without trail

Israel has issued administrative detention orders against dozens of Palestinian detainees, imprisoning them without trial or charge a rights group said.

The Palestinian Prisoner's Society (PPS) said on Sunday that 35 Palestinian detainees have received administrative detention orders - ten of whom have received an administrative order for the first time - and the remaining 25 have had their orders renewed.

Israel says administrative detention is intended to allow authorities to hold suspects while continuing to gather evidence, with the aim of preventing attacks in the meantime.

The policy has been criticised by Palestinians, human rights groups, and members of the international community who say Israel abuses the measure, in which even children are subjected to administrative detention.

The UN in July deplored Israel for its use of administrative detention, especially using the punishing measure against hundreds of Palestinian children.

UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Zeid Raad al-Hussein criticised the "administrative detention" system under which Israel is currently holding an estimated 440 children.

"Israel should immediately charge, or release, all of them," the Geneva-based Zeid said via videolink, calling Israel's system a "fundamental human rights violation".

"It should be absolutely clear that international law requires detention only be used for children as a last resort," he said.

"And whether for children or for adults, detention without trial, on evidence that is often kept secret, under often indefinitely renewable administrative detention orders, contravenes Israel's obligations under international law, and must come to an end."