Asia · Western Asia

Israel

High confidence

Verified 20 May 2026 · Data dated 31 Dec 2023

Fresh · 9d ago

Population rose sharply from October 2023; includes administrative detainees and security prisoners held under both criminal and military law.

Compare Israel World Prison Brief page

Data is aggregated from public sources and may be incomplete or out of date. Always verify with primary sources before acting on any figure. See data sources.

Prison population

19,756

Year: 2023

Rate per 100,000

217

Per 100,000 residents

Occupancy

136.2%

Above design capacity

Pre-trial / remand

25.2%

Share not yet sentenced

Female prisoners

Foreign nationals

38.9%

Conditions risk — across 41 facilities

Average of our computed Conditions Risk Score across the country's facilities. Methodology · Browse highest-risk

38/100

national average

1 elevated 40 unknown

How Israel compares

vs Asia (14) & global averages

Rate per 100,000this: 217 · region: 160 · global: 214

Occupancy ratethis: 136% · region: 149% · global: 125%

Pre-trial sharethis: 25% · region: 34% · global: 32%

The vertical ticks mark the global (grey) and regional (amber) means. Bars are clipped at the high end for readability.

Prison population over time

Annual figures, latest survey year

2000: 9,421+44.4% over 21y2021: 13,600

What we know — and don't

Transparency about the boundaries of this data. Click sources where linked.

What we don't know

Conditions for security detainees opaque since October 2023.

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Held

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See all 41 prisons in Israel →

Data completeness

100%

Score based on how many fields are populated. We surface this so you know where the gaps are.

National population: 9,120,0002023
Source-verified: 20 May 2026
Source links: 3 cited

Sources

Direct citations for the figures on this page.

Primary reference
World Prison Brief (ICPS, Birkbeck) — Institute for Crime & Justice Policy Research
Amnesty International — country pages — Amnesty International
Human Rights Watch — World Report — Human Rights Watch
See /data-sources for our methodology.

Recent reports

Ofer Prison22 Apr 2024
Documented overcrowding, restricted access to medical care, and the suspension of ICRC family-visit programmes since October 2023.
B'Tselem · source