Palestinian prisoners are part of the struggle for liberation

JVL Introduction

“The story of the prisoner is never only about the prisoner. It is about a people who refuses to submit. It is about the stubborn, beautiful, unbreakable human will to be free”

Almost every Palestinian family will have had at least one member who has been in prison; the arrests can often be in the middle of the night, of children who were thought to have thrown stones at armoured vehicles to adults who actually were engaged in the resistance.  After the releases more than 9,100 are still in prison with nearly 4,000 of them held and subject to lengthy incarceration without charge, trial or any form of due process.

When released people face ongoing occupation, a high risk of rearrest and, if from Gaza (or Jenin or Tulkarm in the West Bank) the distinct likelihood of returning to rubble. “Hostages in their own homeland” as this writer puts it.

Palestinian prisoners, like all incarcerated for earlier struggles for freedom, are a central part of the resistance.

Published, with the videos from the original, with permission from Middle East Eye

LL

This article was originally published by Middle East Eye on Fri 17 Oct 2025. Read the original here.