RAMALLAH, (The Palestinian Information Center) Human rights organizations have raised alarms over the worsening health condition of Fidaa Assaf, a detainee from the town of Kafr Laqif, east of Qalqilya, who has been held in Israeli prisons for the past seven months.
Sources report that Assaf is facing a real threat to her life, as she suffers from leukemia, which has significantly worsened due to deliberate medical neglect.
According to prisoner support groups, Assaf, currently held in Damon Prison, is experiencing a severe health decline as her cancer has worsened under the harsh and inhumane detention conditions endured by female prisoners.
During a previous legal visit, her lawyer confirmed that her illness was stable before her arrest. However, recent medical tests showed a dangerous increase in tumor markers, indicating a direct and negative impact of the prison environment on her health.
Assaf also reported that the female detainees are deprived of basic necessities such as hygiene products, personal care items, and adequate clothing. They are also denied access to purchase essentials from the prison canteen.
Recently, they were completely barred from going outside for recreation (“fura time”). Only in recent days were they allowed 20 minutes per day. They remain entirely cut off from the outside world, especially under the state of emergency and the ongoing ban on legal visits.
Assaf stated that she was arrested on February 24, 2025, while returning from the Ramallah Medical Complex after undergoing medical tests. During the arrest, she was subjected to multiple strip searches, verbally abused with obscene insults, and detained in a filthy, insect-infested cell without water or food for several days.
Fidaa Assaf is a married mother from Kafr Laqif in the Qalqilya Governorate.
