Gaza / PNN /

 Freed Palestinian detainee Hussein Al-Zubeidi (25), from Jabalia in northern Gaza, still recalls the physical torture and suffering he endured during nearly two years inside Israeli prisons, before being released recently as part of a prisoner-exchange deal.

Al-Zubeidi said in an interview that he was arrested on 11 December 2023 while staying with his family at a displacement shelter in the town of Jabalia, northern Gaza.

He added that he and others were transferred from Beit Lahia in northern Gaza to the nearby Zikim area, where Israeli interrogation began while he was blindfolded, before he was subjected to direct physical assaults.

Al-Zubeidi is one of 1,700 Palestinian detainees from the Gaza Strip who were released by Israel under a ceasefire and prisoner-exchange agreement with Hamas, which came into effect on 10 October.

On 16 November, Hamas announced that it had received from Israel a list containing the names of 1,468 Palestinian detainees arrested from the Gaza Strip during what it described as the genocidal war.

Al-Zubeidi noted that he was beaten with sticks and weapons all over his body, including sensitive areas, and was also burned with heated metal.

He described the initial phase of interrogation as “the hardest night of my life,” explaining that he underwent a military interrogation that lasted about 12 hours.

There were tears of joy on the day I was freed, but they were followed by tears of sorrow for my homeland and all that it has endured

Al-Zubeidi conveyed shocking testimonies from other detainees regarding what they endured during interrogations, saying that some reported being subjected to sexual assaults using sticks.

He confirmed that the torture caused him “severe nerve and stomach problems,” in addition to deep marks left by the restraints on his wrists.

He added: “The cuffs were embedded half a centimeter into the flesh, and blood came out instead of urine due to the severity of the injury.”

He noted that today he is “unable to move normally and suffers from intense pain in his back, stomach, and sensitive areas.”

After his release, Al-Zubeidi is now living with his family in a tent inside the Islamic University of Gaza, trying to cope with an exhausted body and memories weighed down by violence.

More than 10,000 Palestinian detainees, including children and women, remain held in Israeli prisons, where they face torture, starvation, and medical neglect.