Detained Gaza man left in 'horrifying' state after ordeal in Israeli captivity

Video footage and photos of a wide-eyed and trembling Palestinian man who appears to be in shock have horrified activists and raised the alarm over the treatment of detainees held in Israeli prisons.

The man has been identified by local Palestinian media as Badr Dahlan, a 29-year-old who was detained by Israeli forces in Gaza and held for a month.

In a video which has since gone viral online, Dahlan struggles to speak coherently and describes being beaten, tortured and blindfolded while being incarcerated.

Dahlan says he was taken from the Khan Younis area, calling conditions in the Israeli prison where he was kept "a nightmare".

"They beat me in prison. They told me to keep my head down on the bus and not look up because…I don't know what he told me…I don't know how…" he added, showing visible signs of anxiety and slurring his speech.

"I can't explain it to you…they beat me and they were going to break my legs and cut them. I was scared," he said, unable to complete many of his sentences.

Video footage also showed wounds around Dahlan's wrists.

A Palestinian youth released today in Gaza appears in a state of shock and disorientation, unable to speak clearly due to the inhumane torture inflicted by Israeli forces.

He struggles to recall his identity and describe the harrowing experiences endured in an Israeli detention… pic.twitter.com/ao53lgJjVN

— Quds News Network (@QudsNen) June 20, 2024

Following his release in Gaza, medics took him to the Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital to be treated for his condition.

Social media users shared the video, highlighting the systematic torture of Palestinians detained by Israeli forces.

"In one month, Badr Dahlan was traumatised in IOF captivity, hardly able to focus or speak. Other released detainees have reported men dying in their arms. Can you imagine the conditions of the children, elderly chronically ill and Gazans who have been detained for 257 days?" one person wrote on X.

"30 days were enough to change features, appearance, and personality. Freed prisoner Badr Dahlan…[the photo] summarises the story of the injustice inflicted on Palestinian prisoners in occupation prisons," another wrote.

30 days were enough to change features, appearance, and personality Freed prisoner Badr Dahlan, 30 years before and after his arrest, summarizes the story of the injustice inflicted on Palestinian prisoners in occupation prisons. pic.twitter.com/T1PXxbKiBr

— Mohamed Al Masri 🇵🇸 (@mohamedmasri0) June 20, 2024

According to a recent UN report based on detailed examinations of the ongoing war and interviews with victims, Israeli forces are responsible for  subjecting Palestinians to torture, abuse, forced public nudity, stripping, sexual humiliation and harassment.

This includes blindfolding civilians and forcing them to strip, interrogation while partially dressed and being made to watch their families strip in public while being sexually harassed.