JERUSALEM: Israel’s Supreme Court has struck down a government ban preventing International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) delegates from visiting Palestinian detainees in Israeli prisons, prompting calls on Thursday to resume such visits.
In its judgment issued on Wednesday, the court found that the government had not offered sufficient justification for the blanket ban, which was imposed following the Hamas attack on Israel on October 7, 2023.
The ICRC welcomed the decision, saying it was “ready to resume our visits to detainees in Israeli places of detention.”
“We are continuing our dialogue with the Israeli authorities to resume our work in detention as soon as possible,” it said in a statement on Wednesday evening.
The ICRC stressed that access to detainees — including the ability to meet with them privately — constitutes an obligation under international law.
