On November 20, 2023, Palestinian journalist Abdelhameed Hamdona was arrested while evacuating his family south during an Israeli offensive on Gaza City.
The father of four from Gaza, a broadcaster and correspondent for the Hamas-affiliated radio station Radio Voice of Al-Aqsa and a freelance correspondent for Tunisia’s private Diwan Radio, told CPJ that Israeli forces identified him by name and detained him as they crossed the Netzarim checkpoint.
“The soldiers forced me to strip, interrogated me, and beat me severely on my back and body. They confiscated about 6,000 U.S. dollars I was carrying, insulted me, and demanded I confess to belonging to a Palestinian faction,” Hamdona said. “An officer even threatened to rape my wife, who was with me and our children.”
He said he was first taken to Israel’s Sde Teiman detention camp near Gaza, then transferred to Ktzi’ot Prison in the Negev Desert, where he remained until his release.
Hamdona said he was tortured, shackled for long hours, beaten, starved, and attacked by dogs during transfers between prisons. He added that many prisoners suffered from disease outbreaks, and that he nearly died twice due to boils and scabies that led to blood poisoning.
“We lost track of time and religious dates,” he said. “We would fast for Ramadan days late or celebrate Eid on the wrong day.”
He appeared four times via video conference before a military judge, who repeatedly extended his detention on the grounds that he was a “security threat to Israel” and designated him an “unlawful combatant.”
Hamdona said he lost 10 kilograms during his imprisonment — from 75 kg at the time of his arrest to 65 kg upon release — dropping at one point to 55 kg due to malnutrition and illness.
“They gave us food not enough for a child,” he said. “Once, I traded three days’ worth of meals just to get a shirt to protect myself from the cold.”
He described inhumane conditions, including restricted toilet access, cold-water showers, and no hygiene supplies.
Hamdona was released on October 13, 2025, as part of the Israel-Hamas ceasefire deal after nearly two years in detention.