‘I’ll Stand At Prison Gates’: MKs Push To Block Red Cross Visits To Israeli Prisons

During a heated session of the Knesset National Security Committee on Tuesday, several MKs argued against allowing the International Committee of the Red Cross access to Israeli prisons. Officials from the Israel Prison Service (IPS) cautioned that permitting such visits could endanger national security.

Since the Hamas massacre on October 7, 2023, and the start of the Israel-Hamas conflict, the Red Cross has not been allowed to visit Palestinian inmates or deliver updates on their status.

In August 2024, the High Court demanded that the state explain why it continues to block Red Cross representatives from entering Israeli prisons to meet with Palestinian detainees.

Committee members argued that since the Red Cross has failed to provide adequate aid or visit Israelis held captive in Gaza, it is unacceptable to allow the organization to meet with Palestinian prisoners.

Committee chair MK Zvika Fogel of Otzma Yehudit declared that “no effort” had been made by the Red Cross for the hostages.

“Reciprocity must be preserved and conditions kept equal. I will do everything to ensure the Red Cross visits our hostages, and until that happens, I will stand at the prison gates and prevent their visits,” Fogel told the gathering.

MK Limor Son Har-Melech, also from Otzma Yehudit, lashed out at the Red Cross, labeling it “an antisemitic organization.”

She accused the organization of “acting in a biased manner toward our hostages” by equating them with Palestinian prisoners instead of recognizing them as “terrorists who raped, murdered, and committed horrific crimes.”

By contrast, MK Aida Touma-Sliman of Hadash-Tal spoke in favor of reinstating the Red Cross visits. She argued, “Many things are happening inside the prisons. The High Court ruling on prisoner conditions is no coincidence.”

Her comments referred to a recent High Court decision that found the IPS had failed to provide sufficient and nutritious food for security prisoners. National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir has publicly advocated for stricter conditions, though he insists that inmates are still receiving “basic minimal conditions required by law.”

Touma-Sliman further claimed that the Red Cross’s absence from the hostages is not due to neglect, but rather because the group has not been able to “convince Hamas to allow visits.”

“To blame them [Red Cross] for that is far-fetched and absurd. Both sides are telling them: You will not visit until the other side allows it,” she said.

An IPS counter-terror division representative expressed concerns that Red Cross involvement could compromise safety, warning, “We have information that Red Cross visits could harm prison security and possibly state security.”

The IPS legal advisor also defended the ban, telling lawmakers, “Since the beginning of the war, the IPS’s position has been that the Red Cross should not enter prisons, based on a professional assessment by the intelligence division that such visits could harm prison security and endanger prison staff.”

Likud MK Ariel Kallner likewise emphasized the dangers of permitting access, pointing to past incidents.

“There have been cases where the Red Cross harmed state security and used its access to convey information,” he said.

“Allowing visits to those murderers in our prisons is a delusional request that is unfair, unjustified, and unacceptable,” Kallner added.

Family members of hostages also spoke during the meeting, voicing their anguish.

Hanna Cohen, whose niece Inbar Haiman was murdered and whose body is still being held by Hamas, shared her pain: “Our daughter was kidnapped by those who sit in prison and are now requesting Red Cross visits.”

“In a normal country, they should have been executed,” she said bitterly.

“I don’t know where our daughter is. The law obligates the Red Cross to check where she is. My family is tortured,” Cohen added.

Concluding the debate, Fogel urged the government to take a hard stance, saying, “We must act as a state with backbone. The cabinet must decide: no Red Cross visits until information on our hostages is received.”

{Matzav.com Israel}