Israel is currently holding a total of 1,264 Palestinians in administrative detention, according to a UN official.
The number of administrative detainees is the highest in more than a decade, UN Middle East envoy Tor Wiensland told the UN Security Council at a press conference on Wednesday, September 27.
It is noteworthy that administrative detention is a prison sentence ranging from three to six months, without trial or charge, and the judge can renew it continuously.
Wiensland noted that the Israeli security forces carried out 1,042 search and arrest operations in the West Bank, which led to the arrest of 1,504 Palestinians, including 88 children.
During the reporting period, extending from July 15 to Tuesday, September 19, 68 Palestinians, including 18 children, were killed by Israeli security forces during demonstrations, clashes, security operations, attacks or alleged attacks against Israelis, and other incidents.
The UN official confirmed that a total of 2,830 Palestinians, including 30 women and 559 children, were injured, including 271 by live ammunition and 2,119 by tear gas inhalation.
He pointed out that the lack of funding continues to undermine the United Nations’ ability to provide vital services to the Palestinians.
Wiensland said that the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) is in urgent need of 75 million dollars to continue food aid until the end of the year for 1.2 million Palestinians in Gaza.
Wiensland expressed deep concern about “the escalation of violence in the occupied West Bank and Israel, at levels not seen in decades and the increasing use of lethal weapons, even in densely populated areas.”
He stressed the need to take immediate steps to calm tensions.
