Ramallah:Israeli authorities handed over the body of 17-year-old Palestinian detainee Walid Khaled Ahmad from Silwad, east of Ramallah. This decision followed legal efforts by Nadia Daqa, a lawyer with the Commission of Detainees and Ex-Detainees Affairs.
According to Palestine news & Information Agency – WAFA – English, Ahmad died in March 2025 inside Megiddo Prison, approximately six months after his detention. Reports indicate that he was subjected to starvation and denied medical treatment, leading to a severe deterioration in his health. In December 2025, an Israeli court in Hadera closed the investigation into his death, despite medical findings supporting these claims.
Following the handover of Ahmad's body, Israeli authorities are still withholding the bodies of 98 Palestinian prisoners who have died in custody since 1967. Since the start of the genocidal war, 92 Palestinian prisoners and detainees have died, with the bodies of 87 remaining withheld by Israeli authorities.
The Commission and the Palestinian Prisoner's Society report that around 350 children are currently held in Ofer and Megiddo prisons, facing violations such as starvation, torture, and denial of medical care. These violations have reportedly intensified since the onset of the genocidal war. Both organizations highlight Ahmad's case as evidence of crimes against Palestinian prisoners and call for accountability and the release of all withheld bodies.