A/HRC/28/68/Add.1 the children was held in solitary confinement for five days. All three were forced to sign confessions under duress, statements that then formed the basis for sentences of several weeks in prison. 270. In his interim report to the General Assembly of 5 August 2011 (A/66/268), the Special Rapporteur on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment defined solitary confinement, in accordance with the Istanbul Statement on the Use and Effects Solitary Confinement, as the physical and social isolation of individuals who are confined in their cells for 22 to 24 hours a day. He observed that while solitary confinement for short periods of time may be justified under certain circumstances, with adequate and effective safeguards in place, the use of prolonged or indefinite solitary confinement may never constitute a legitimate instrument of the State and is running afoul the absolute prohibition of torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment. Furthermore, due to the prisoner’s lack of communication, as well as the lack of witnesses inside the prison, solitary confinement may also give rise to other acts of torture or ill-treatment 271. The Special Rapporteur recalls that when used or for juveniles, pregnant women, or people with mental disabilities, persons serving life sentences and persons awaiting execution on “death row” (A/66/268 and A/68/295), solitary confinement amounts to cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment or even torture, even if not used indefinitely or for a prolonged period of time. 272. In the absence of information to the contrary, the Rapporteur concludes that there is substance in the allegations presented in the initial communication, reiterated above, and thus, that the Government of Israel, by failing to protect the physical and psychological integrity of the children in question, exclude evidence obtained under torture or illtreatment from proceedings against them, and take steps to put a stop to the alleged pattern of abuse on the part of Israeli Security Forces, has acted in discordance with article 15 of the CAT and violated, their right to be free from torture or cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment, as provided by articles 1 and 16 of the CAT. (b) JUA 12/06/2014 Case No. ISR 4/2014 State Reply: None to date Allegations concerning the arrest and detention of Mr. Ahmad Ishraq Rimawi. 273. The Special Rapporteur regrets that the Government of Israel has not replied to the present communication, thereby failing to cooperate with the mandate issued by the Human Rights Council in its resolution 25/13, and to comply with its obligation, under international customary law, to investigate, prosecute and punish all acts of torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment, as codified, inter alia, in the Convention against Torture (CAT). 274. In the absence of information to the contrary, the Rapporteur concludes that there is substance in the allegations presented in the initial communication, reiterated above and thus, that the Government of Israel, by arbitrarily arresting and detaining Mr. Ahmad Ishraq Rimawi, has violated his right to be free from torture or cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment, as provided by articles 1 and 16 of the CAT. (c) JUA 20/06/2014 Case No. ISR 5/2014 State Reply: None to date Allegations concerning the draft amendment to the Prisons Act (preventing damages due to hunger strikes), to be presented for the second and third readings at the Knesset on 23 June 2014. 275. The Special Rapporteur regrets that the Government of Israel has not replied to the present communication, thereby failing to cooperate with the mandate issued by the Human Rights Council in its resolution 25/13, and to comply with its obligation, under international customary law, to investigate, prosecute and punish all acts of torture and 47