Three judges on Israel’s High Court ruled unanimously to revoke the government’s policy prohibiting visits by the Red Cross to Palestinian security prisoners held in Israel Prison Service and IDF facilities, including the Nukhba terrorists who participated in the murderous October 7 massacre.
The policy was instituted immediately after the October 7 massacre.
The main ruling was written by Justice Daphne Barak‑Erez, who wrote that the government failed to present a legal basis for the policy. Previously, the government’s main justification for the policy was the fact that the Red Cross did not visit Israeli hostages in Gaza.
Deputy President of the Court, Justice Noam Solberg, joined the ruling, noting “the difficulty of reconciling the policy with the relevant provisions of domestic law, which the state chose not to amend or repeal, and the state’s failure to present any legal basis for its decisions despite many opportunities to do so.”
Justice Yitzchak Amit agreed with the other two judges.
The Court therefore ruled that the state must permit Red Cross representatives to visit security prisoners and provide information about their status in accordance with the procedures outlined in the Red Cross Ordinance, and, with necessary adjustments, in IDF‑run facilities as well.
National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir condemned the decision. “A disgraceful decision by detached judges who sit in an ivory tower and continue to worry about terrorists while Israeli citizens pay the price of terrorism. Every such decision is a reminder of why the judicial system needs deep reform. Reform now!”
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