The released Palestinians burn “racist” shirts forced by Israel in exchange for captives after tense negotiations.
The movement of Israel to force the Palestinians released to wear shirts with a star of the David logo and “we will not forget or forgive” written in Arabic has aroused anger and has been criticized as a “racist crime”.
On Saturday, 369 Palestinians were released in exchange for three captives in Gaza after the days of tense negotiations.
Before the exchange, the penitentiary service of Israel published photos of some of the Palestinians dressed in these provocative shirts. While the Palestinians returned, a number of them wore their shirts upside down to cover messages.
Gaza | Palestinian detainees, released today as part of the prisoner exchange agreement, and their families burn the uniforms that Israeli prisoners have forced, wearing the star of David and the expression “we do not will not forgive, we will not forget. ” pic.twitter.com/dzspksacnm
– QUDS News Network (@qudsnen) February 15, 2025
Images shot in Gaza by Tel Aviv Tribune have shown that some Palestinians set fire to the shirts when they arrived at the European Gaza Hospital in Khan Younis in Gaza.
“We condemn the crime of the occupation to place racist slogans on the back of our heroic prisoners and to deal with them with cruelty and violence, in a blatant violation of humanitarian laws and standards,” Hamas said in a statement.
He added that this is “unlike firm commitment to resistance to moral values in the treatment of prisoners of the occupation”.
The Palestinian Islamic jihad group has also condemned shirts as a “racist crime”.
According to the Israeli broadcasting authority, citing an Israeli source, there have also been criticisms in Israel on uniforms. A source said that the political level of Israel was not informed of this decision.
Forcing Palestian detainees to wear t-shirts with David’s star and the words “We will not forget and we will not forgive” which are written to them is a grotesque violation of international law prohibiting works on personal dignity, in Particularly humiliating and degrading … pic.twitter.com/1wxhpro33e
– Gary Spedding (@GARYSPEDDING) February 15, 2025
The decision to ensure that the Palestinians put on the shirts were taken by Israeli penitentiary commissioner Kobi Yaacobi, the source told the diffuser.
Mohamad Elmasry, professor of the media study program at the Doha Institute for Graduate Studies, told Tel Aviv Tribune that it was “another method” under which Israel intended to “dehumanize” the Palestinians.
The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), which facilitates exchange, called all parties to more “worthy” versions.
“Despite what all transfers are made several times in a worthy and private manner, you must be made by all parties, including mediators, to improve future transfers,” the ICRC said in a statement on Saturday.
Who will bet that we will not see a single mention in the consumer media of Israel forcing elderly tortured, hungry and sexually assaulted captives in concentration camps to wear shirts “We will never forget and never forgive” with David stars? pic.twitter.com/aednvyzfs4
– Muhammad Shehada (@ muhammadshehad2) February 15, 2025
The fury surrounding provocative shirts underlines a long policy of “humiliation”, according to Xavier Abu Eid, a political analyst speaking in Tel Aviv Tribune de Bethlehem in occupied West Bank.
“We have analyzed in recent weeks the humiliation of Palestinian prisoners,” said Abu Eid. He noted that it was “nothing new” but not only damaged the prisoners but also their families.
A total of 24 captives and 985 Palestinians have been released since the start of the ceasefire in January, according to the ICRC.