Elderly Palestinian woman dies in Israeli detention
Protesters, including an Orthodox Christian priest (back C) and Muslim imam (front C), lift placards during a demonstration in front of the Red Cross in support of Palestinians detained in Israeli prisons, Ramallah city, occupied West Bank, Palestine, June 14, 2022. (AFP Photo)


A Palestinian woman died Saturday in Israeli detention, according to a local nongovernmental organization (NGO).

Saadia Farajallah, 68, breathed her last breath in the Israeli Dimon prison near Haifa in northern Israel, the Palestinian Prisoner Society said in a statement.

The circumstances of her death, however, were not yet clear.

Farajallah, a mother of eight from the town of Idna in the occupied West Bank, was detained by Israeli forces in December 2021 while she was near the Ibrahimi Mosque in Hebron city.

The Palestinian Authority held Israel responsible for the death of the Palestinian detainee.

Farajallah's death "was the latest episode in the racist crimes committed against our detainees and female prisoners," Qadri Abu Baker, the head of the Palestinian Commission of Detainees and ex-Detainees, said in a statement.

He said the silence of the international community "allows the Israeli occupation to commit more crimes against our prisoners."

At least 230 Palestinians have died while in Israeli detention, according to Palestinian figures. Farajallah was one of 29 Palestinian women held in the Damon prison.

According to Palestinian estimates, there are 4,600 Palestinians held in Israeli detention facilities.