High Court: State must explain refusal to let Red Cross see Palestinian prisoners

The state must explain why it should not cancel its policy that forbids Red Cross visits to Palestinian prisoners and detainees from Gaza and the West Bank, the High Court of Justice ruled Sunday.

It also must explain why the information of these prisoners should not be submitted to the International Committee of the Red Cross, it said.

The state bodies named in the order, including the government, the Defense Ministry, and the military advocate-general, must provide this explanation in September at least one week before the next High Court hearing, it added.

The order follows a February petition from the human-rights organizations Association for Civil Rights in Israel (ACRI), Physicians for Human Rights-Israel, HaMoked, and Gisha, demanding that the Red Cross be allowed to visit and receive information about the prisoners.

The petition was filed after Red Cross visits were stopped for all Palestinian prisoners and the transfer of information was stopped following the October 7 massacre and the outbreak of the Israel-Hamas war, ACRI said.

“According to international law, even if one of the sides in a conflict is not fulfilling its obligation according to the law of war, this does not absolve the other side from their obligations,” the petition said.

International law

Even though Hamas is holding Israeli hostages in horrible conditions, is not giving information about them to the Red Cross, and is refusing to allow visits of the Red Cross, Israel is still obligated to allow the visits, it said.

In June, the state told the High Court it intended to set up its own alternative to the Red Cross that would oversee the prisoners, ACRI said, adding that this is interpreted by the petitioners as Israel  making a conscious decision to break international law.

The IDF Spokesperson’s Unit said the legal process was ongoing, and that it would comment on it after its conclusion. The Prime Minister’s Office, the Defense Ministry, and the National Security Ministry did not respond to requests for comment.