More than 350 Palestinian children were being held in Israeli prisons at the end of 2025, according to data cited by rights groups, with many detained without a formal charge and subjected to harsh conditions, advocacy organizations and testimonies indicate.
A total of 351 Palestinian minors were in Israeli custody as of December 31, 2025, according to figures from the Israeli Prison Service (IPS) cited by Save the Children. Of those, 180, or 51 percent, were held under “administrative detention” – a practice that allows imprisonment without charge or trial.
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Rights groups say the conditions surrounding these detentions raise serious concerns. According to Defense for Children International-Palestine (DCIP), most detained children report being arrested during nighttime raids, blindfolded, bound, strip-searched, and subjected to physical and verbal assault.
“They are often taken from their homes without being able to access lawyers, without being able to speak to their parents,” Alexandra Saieh, Head of Global Strategic Influencing and Policy at Save the Children, told Al Arabiya English.
