The Israeli Prison Services has kept administrative detainee, human rights activist, feminist, and former member of the Palestinian Legislative Council, Khalida Jarrar, in isolation Neve Tirza prison in Ramleh for seven consecutive days. Jarrar was arrested at dawn on Tuesday, December 26, 2023, from her home in Ramallah, and was issued a six-month administrative detention order, which was renewed for an additional six months, set to expire in December 2024. According to her lawyer, who managed to visit her, Jarrar is suffering under extremely harsh isolation and detention conditions amid the severe restrictions and the systematic campaign of abuse carried out by the occupation authorities against prisoners since the beginning of the comprehensive aggression and the ongoing genocide that started on October 7.

On August 12, 2024, the IPS stormed Khalida Jarrar's cell in Damon Prison and forcibly removed her. Jarrar was put in a filthy cell infested with tics, where she remained for an entire day without being interrogated.

On August 13, without prior notice or explanation, she was transferred from her cell without her necessary eyeglasses, which had been kept from her. She was informed that she was being transferred but was not told where. She remained in the Bosta (transport vehicle) for five hours before being taken to the Neve Tirza Prison in Ramleh, which is used for the isolation of detainees. Jarrar was informed that she was prohibited from receiving visits from her lawyer and they refused to disclose the reasons for her isolation at Neve Tirza or the duration of her stay.

Khalida Jarrar was placed in a very small isolation cell, measuring only 2 by 1.5 meters, where the only available space is occupied by a mattress. The cell also contains a tiny bathroom with a toilet and a shower. It is completely sealed off, with no window for ventilation or fresh air.

The IPS even blocked the small openings on the bathroom window, which were her only source of fresh air. Jarrar described the cell's conditions, noting that the temperature inside is extremely high due to the lack of ventilation. She is provided with very limited amounts of water and extremely poor-quality food in small quantities, which is particularly concerning given her health issues and need for a special diet. Since the first day of her isolation, Jarrar has been denied access to the outdoor yard (the "fora").

Khalida Jarrar is a former prisoner and administrative detainee who has spent approximately five and a half years in Israeli prisons, alternating between administrative detention and formal charges. A prominent human rights and feminist activist, as well as a former member of the Palestinian Legislative Council, Jarrar experienced deep personal loss during her previous detention when she lost her daughter, unable to bid her a final farewell.

Jarrar is one of 86 Palestinian female prisoners held under extremely harsh conditions in Israeli prisons. Since the beginning of the recent crackdown accompanying the aggression against Palestinians, the occupation authorities have intensified their arrests of Palestinian women. The occupation has also escalated its use of arbitrary administrative detention against them, with 19 Palestinian women currently held under this policy—the highest number in years.

The occupation authorities also re-arrested six Palestinian women who had been released as part of the latest exchange deal in November 2024, as part of the ongoing policy of the occupation to target, pursue, and detain former female and male prisoners.

Addameer calls the international community to take urgent action and put pressure on the Israeli authorities to immediately end Khalida Jarrar’s isolation.