The Israel Prison Service and Attorney General's office seek to lengthen Ahmad Manasra's solitary confinement

The Israel Prison Service and the Attorney General's office want to lengthen a mentally ill Palestinian man's solitary confinement, despite health officials' warnings that it might exacerbate the condition. 

Ahmad Manasra, a twenty-year-old Palestinian prisoner, has been in isolation for nearly one year. The Israeli authorities want to keep him isolated for another six months. 

Health experts warn that this could worsen his mental condition. 

On Sunday, an Israeli court postponed ruling on the authorities' request to prolong Ahmad's isolation and scheduled a new session on 24 November 2022. 

Quoting a doctor, advocate Khalid Zaharka told The New Arab, "placing Ahmad in solitary confinement exacerbates his condition."

Zabarka has objected to the authorities' demand for an extension. 

The Israel Prison Service claim that Ahmad poses a danger to inmates and himself. 

Ahmad Manasra was only 13 years old when, according to the Israeli police, he and his 15-year-old cousin Hasan went on a stabbing spree, wounding an Israeli man in his 20s and critically wounding a 13-year-old Israeli boy on a bicycle. Ahmed was then struck by a car and injured, while Hassan was shot dead by police.

In 2016, an Israeli court sentenced Ahmad, a minor at the time, to nine-and-a-half years. His mental health has deteriorated over time, and lawyers have tried but failed to get the courts to release him on medical grounds. 

A request to put Ahmad in front of a committee for early release was rejected recently under a terror clause. 

According to Addameer, Israel uses solitary confinement as a disciplinary measure against prisoners, and the practice is common during interrogation. 

Addameer delivers legal support and advocacy to Palestinian prisoners.