Israel's Supreme Court ruled on Sunday that the state was failing to provide adequate food to Palestinian prisoners and ordered authorities to take steps to improve their nutrition, saying the government is legally obliged to ensure detainees receive enough sustenance to maintain "a basic level of existence."
The three-judge bench said the shortcomings warranted corrective measures after a petition by Israeli human rights groups challenged changes to prison food policies that they said had led to malnutrition and even starvation among detainees. The court stopped short of prescribing a detailed menu but required the state to present concrete plans for ensuring adequate nutrition.
Thousands of Palestinians are held in Israeli custody, including many detained on terror-related charges and a large number taken into custody since the war began in October 2023. The petitioners, including the Association for Civil Rights in Israel, argued that altered food practices and limits on provisions had produced widespread hunger and health deterioration among prisoners. The association called on social media for the ruling to be implemented immediately.
Access to detainees has been a point of contention since the Hamas attack on Oct. 7, 2023. Israel has not granted the International Committee of the Red Cross access to Palestinian detainees since that attack. Former detainees returned to Gaza have told media they were subjected to mistreatment and torture while in Israeli military and prison custody.
Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir criticized the ruling on social media, saying Israeli hostages held in Gaza have "no Supreme Court to protect them" and that he would continue to enforce what he described as the minimum legal conditions for "imprisoned terrorists." The government has not indicated that it will defy the order; the court ruling requires the state to set out steps to bring conditions into line with legal obligations.
The decision comes amid intense diplomatic and military developments connected to the Gaza war. Talks over a ceasefire and a possible hostage exchange have stalled, but on Sunday U.S. President Donald Trump issued what he described as a "last warning" to Hamas, urging it to accept terms he said Israel had already accepted. In a post on his social platform, Trump wrote that "this is my last warning, there will not be another one!" and told reporters he expected "a deal on Gaza very soon," saying he believed all remaining hostages would be returned "dead or alive." Hamas responded that it was ready to "immediately sit at the negotiating table" after receiving what it called American ideas aimed at reaching a ceasefire.
Israeli officials have not formally confirmed acceptance of the terms Trump described. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has repeatedly insisted that a complete defeat of Hamas is necessary and has linked any resolution to securing the release of all hostages. Of the roughly 48 hostages believed still held in Gaza, Israeli authorities and intermediaries say as many as 20 may be alive.
On the battlefield, Israel has intensified operations in and around Gaza City. Health officials in Gaza reported at least 87 people killed in the past 24 hours, while the Hamas-run health ministry's cumulative toll since Oct. 7 stands at more than 64,000. The United Nations has described the ministry's figures as reliable; Israel disputes them. Over the weekend the Israeli military struck and destroyed several high-rise buildings in Gaza City, saying the structures were used by Hamas for intelligence or combat purposes. Palestinian authorities denied the allegations and condemned the strikes as attacks on civilians.
Human rights groups, including those that brought the prison food petition, have for years criticized conditions in Israeli detention facilities. The Supreme Court ruling makes clear that despite security considerations, the state has a binding legal duty to ensure prisoners receive adequate food. The court ordered authorities to report on steps they will take to guarantee nutrition standards, setting the stage for legal and political scrutiny of how — and how quickly — those measures are implemented.