Sami a-Sa'i, 46, a father of six from Tulkarm
On 23 February 2024, shortly after midnight, an Israeli military force raided my home in the Irtah neighborhood in southern Tulkarm, and arrested me. They put me in a military jeep that took me to the military camp in Huwarah, where I was held for about 19 days. I wasn’t beaten or abused there. During that time, I was taken to the Salem military camp, where I was interrogated by Israeli police. The police officer who interrogated me introduced himself as Khaled and accused me of belonging to Hamas and aiding a Palestinian armed group. I denied both accusations. At the end of the interrogation, the police officer told me they’d decided to put me in administrative detention for four months. After the interrogation, I was taken back to Huwarah.
The doctor said they would “rape everyone who belongs to Hamas,” and in Arabic said things like, “We’ll fuck them.”
Sometime between 10 and 12 March 2024, Border Police officers transferred me from the detention facility in Huwarah to Megiddo Prison. A masked female Border Police officer received me. She conducted a physical search on me, blindfolded me, and led me to the prison infirmary escorted by the same Border Police officers. On the way to the infirmary, I heard the screams of detainees who were being beaten by prison guards, and I heard the soldiers chanting “Am Yisrael Chai” [the People of Israel live] and forcing the detainees to repeat after them.
At the infirmary, a doctor received me and asked me, “Are you Hamas?” I replied that I was a journalist. The doctor said they would “rape everyone who belongs to Hamas,” and in Arabic said things like, “We’ll fuck them.” Then he examined me. After that, the Border Police officers led me back to the passageway, and I was transferred to the responsibility of the Israel Prison Service [IPS].
One of the IPS men ordered me to take off all my clothes and throw them in the trash. After I stripped naked, they led me a few meters, and then one of them ordered me to get down on my knees with my head on the floor. The IPS men started kicking me, punching me, beating me with a hand-held metal detector, and kicking me all over my body. The abuse lasted a long time, and while it was going on, I heard them warning one another about the security cameras on the walls. They were speaking Hebrew, which I understand.
I collapsed on the floor, and then the IPS men dragged me to a place where it was hard to breathe. I was so exhausted that I threw myself face down on the floor, and they started beating me again. One of them sat on my back, another trod on my head, and the third tried to push something hard into my anus. I tried to clench my muscles and resist, but they managed to push it in. The pain was horrific and I screamed, but they repeated that six times. Then I felt them pour some kind of liquid on my backside, I don't know what it was. All three of them laughed and jeered while abusing and raping me. Afterwards, they picked me up, put my pants on and ordered me to walk. I told them I couldn’t walk, so they dragged me along, while beating and kicking me. I made an effort to stand and walk on my own after all, hoping they would beat me less.
One of them sat on my back, another trod on my head, and the third tried to push something hard into my anus. I tried to clench my muscles and resist, but they managed to push it in.
They led me to Wing 10, took off the blindfold and the leg ties, and put me in Room No. 5. This was during the Ramadan evening meal for breaking the fast. I asked the detainees there if I could have a shower, because I felt bleeding in my anus. I tried to stop the bleeding with a bandage I made out of toilet paper. I didn’t tell the detainees who were held with me what I’d been through. For 22 days, I tried to treat myself like that, until the bleeding stopped.
Ten days after that, IPS people raided the room and attacked us with batons.
I was held in Megiddo Prison for a month and then transferred to Ramon Prison, where I was held for 15 months, because my administrative detention was extended four times, each time for four months.
On 10 June 2025, I was released at the a-Dhahiriyah checkpoint after 16 months of administrative detention, with no indictment filed against me.
About 40 days after I was released, after giving it a lot of thought, I decided to share on TikTok what they did to me. I spoke about the abuse I went through in custody and about how the IPS people treated me. I didn’t shy away from talking about the rape, even though Israeli violations of that kind are considered taboo in our society, and people don’t talk about them.
* Testimony given to B'Tselem field researcher Abdulkarim Sadi on 22 July 2025