RED CROSS CONTROVERSY: Visits To Terrorists Still Haven't Resumed Despite Court Ruling

More than two months after Israel's High Court of Justice ordered the state to resume Red Cross visits to security prisoners, the visits remain suspended, according to reporting by Haaretz. The Association for Civil Rights in Israel has written to Israel Prison Service Commissioner Kobi Yaakobi and Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara, asserting that the continued suspension breaches the court's ruling and requesting an urgent response. The High Court had unanimously ruled that visits must resume, finding that the government's decision to halt them lacked basis in Israeli legislation or international law. Last month, the Israel Prison Service introduced a new six-month procedure with strict conditions on resumed visits. The Red Cross would be allowed only one visit per quarter, with no more than five prisoners eligible for submission ahead of each visit, subject to advance approval and intelligence review. Prisoners classified as "particularly dangerous," Those held in isolation, and those under investigation would be barred from meeting Red Cross representatives. Meetings would be capped at 30 minutes, and prison commanders could shorten them further. The organization has faced criticism in Israel for not visiting any of the 251 hostages abducted during the October 7 massacre while held by Hamas, and for not pressuring the group to permit such visits.