RAMALLAH, West Bank — Lawyers for two Palestinians who were captured after escaping from an Israeli prison last week said Wednesday their clients were badly beaten during their arrest, with the most well-known of the prisoners suffering a broken jaw and two broken ribs while in handcuffs.
Six Palestinian prisoners, five of whom have been charged in deadly attacks against Israelis, tunneled out of a maximum-security prison in northern Israel on Sept. 6 in the first mass prison break in decades. Four were recaptured around five days later.
The escape from Gilboa prison exposed a series of security mishaps and was hailed by Palestinians as a show of defiance against Israel’s half-century occupation. Two of the prisoners are still at large.
Lawyers were able to meet with the recaptured prisoners for the first time late Tuesday and early Wednesday, providing the first opportunity to hear of the escape from the prisoners themselves.