RAMALLAH: Two Palestinian organisations that monitor the conditions of Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails announced on Sunday the death of a detainee in an Israeli hospital, without specifying how he died.

The Palestinian Commission of Detainees' Affairs and the Palestinian Prisoners' Club reported that Israeli officials had informed Palestinian officials about the "martyrdom of prisoner Mohammad Munir Moussa from Bethlehem at Soroka Hospital in Israel."

Moussa, 37, had been detained by Israel since April last year and had been suffering from diabetes prior to his arrest and until now there was no information available about the circumstances of his death, according to the two Palestinian organisations.

There was no immediate comment from the Israeli authorities responsible for Palestinian detainees.

Israel currently detains more than 9,600 Palestinians – including more than 5,000 who were arrested after Oct 7, 2023, following the outbreak of war in Gaza triggered by Hamas' attack on southern Israel – according to data provided by Palestinian officials.

The head of the Palestinian Commission of Detainees, Qaddura Fares, accused Israel of taking "revenge" on Palestinian detainees after Hamas's attack. His agency is part of the Palestinian Authority, which has partial administrative control in the West Bank.

With the death of Moussa the number of Palestinian detainees who have died in Israeli custody has risen to 41 since Oct 7, 2023, according to Palestinian officials.

Of those, 24 were from Gaza.

Since Israel occupied the West Bank in 1967, 278 Palestinians are known to have died in Israeli prisons, according to these organisations.

The issue of Palestinian detainees in Israel has become a central point in the war between Israel and Hamas, with the Islamist movement demanding the release of a large number of Palestinian prisoners in exchange for the release of Israeli hostages taken captive during their attack that began the war.

Out of 251 people taken hostage by militants on Oct 7 last year, 97 are still being held inside the Gaza Strip, including 34 who the Israeli military says are dead.

  - AFP