Palestinian detainees use hi-tech appliances to overcome their harsh conditions.

NABLUS, December 31 (IslamOnline.net) – Necessity is the mother of invention is a saying perfectly applied by the Palestinians, especially those who face the worst of the worst in the harsh detention conditions in Israeli jails.

Palestinian detainees never stop coming up with unconventional methods or use the best their hands could reach to avoid the massive isolative measures imposed by their Israeli jailers to keep them totally not in touch with their families or the outside world.

Many detainees use camera mobile phones to have a virtual contact with their families and create a network to maintain internal solidarity among them.

The phones have the options to shoot photographs or record a video tape for a few minutes or even seconds which could be sent to other mobiles or e-mail boxes.

Thamer Nabil El-Hajji, a detainee in Magido, told IslamOnline.net over the phone Thursday, December 30, that the phones have gained popularity inside the Israeli prison in the northern West Bank .

Many detainees use camera cellular or mobile phones, although sending out one photo costs them as much as five shekels or one dollar, El-Hajji told IOL.

El-Hajji made the interview over his mobile phone, equipped with a camera he uses to communicate with his family in virtual reality.

Restrictions

The non-stop effort on the side of Palestinians comes to counter the increasingly massive restrictions imposed by Israeli prison authorities to cut off detainees from the new service.

Cell signals are regularly jammed by hi-tech sophisticated equipment and the search of relatives and detainees has been reinforced.

However, the detainees have their own ways to go through the restrictions in primitive, yet successful ways.

El-Hajji said occupation soldiers serving in the prison have been bribed for allowing cells inside the facility.

The appliances, usually have a small shape, could be hidden in clothes or goods the detainees are allowed to obtain.

Human rights activists or the lawyers of detainees -– who are not subject to frisking -– have also acted to facilitate their access.

Prison authorities are aware of the existence of the phones, and regularly launch search campaigns to confiscate them, according to El-Hajji.

The detainees have also their creative ways to stop the work of jamming equipment in the prison such as the use of antennas.

Solidarity

The use of such a hi-tech device was not limited to communication purposes, as detainees have used the cell phones to rally support for a hunger strike they launched in August.

They used the cells to contact human rights organizations to highlight their suffering in detention.

Thousands of Palestinians detained by Israel began Sunday, August 15, an open-ended hunger strike for a number of demands including improving their incarcerating conditions.

Amnesty International said in its annual report in May that at least 1,500 Palestinians were held in administrative detention without charge or trial.

The report said “allegations of torture and ill-treatment of Palestinian detainees were widespread,” and slammed the Israeli army for carrying out “forcible transfers” of at least 18 Palestinians from their native West Bank to the Gaza Strip following administrative detention without charge or trial.