Inherent in the work of the Israel Prison Service is a social mission to enhance offenders
potential for successful integration within the community by ensuring their incarceration is in a safe, secure environment; by respecting their dignity; accommodating their basic needs; and assisting them in acquiring rehabilitative skills in collaboration with government agencies and community organizations.
The Israel Prison Service places great emphasis on rehabilitating criminals and offers many rehabilitation programs and allocates budgets for the education and professional training of prisoners.
Among the projects is offers is drug rehabilitation. In the early 90s, Ha'sharon prison launched the largest rehabilitation center of its kind for treating drug afflicted prisoners. Furthermore, specific divisions within the prison were designated for particular purposes, such as a drug rehabilitation division, a sex offenders' division, and a division for the treatment of prisoners convicted of domestic violence.
One example is "Beit Ha'tikva" (House of Hope), a ward for the treatment of violent prisoners in the Chermon prison. The Chermon prison also has a rehabilitation center - the largest center of its kind in Israel.
Underage Prisoners
There is also a need to rehabilitate underage prisoners. As a result, today, all prisons offer schooling, allowing prisoners to complete 12 years of mandatory education, take matriculation exams, obtain a profession and work in various prison factories. As a result, many entrepreneurs establish factories and production departments within the prisons.
Religious Rehabilitation
Religious rehabilitation is another important issue that the Israel Prison Service deals with. Throughout the country, prisons offer a rehabilitation process in which religion is the guiding light to correct their past ways.
Educational Rehabilitation
There is a special Education Department in the Israel Prison Service which is responsible for organizing an educational framework for prisoners in all of the criminal facilities in Israel. Its mission is to to create changes in the thought process and behavioral patterns of inmates in an effort to help them acquire life skills and qualifications that will help them transform their period of incarceration into a "school for life," thereby increasing their chances of rehabilitation into society. The guiding principle behind the educational framework at the Israel Prison Service is the belief that every person is capable of change. Educational capabilities must be encouraged and potential should be realized by nurturing positive habits and cognitive, behavioral and social skills through education and creativity.
The therapeutic frameworks in the prisons are designed to assist the prisoner during this period of his life: to alleviate emotional difficulties and to encourage him to change his criminal lifestyle and begin considering other possibilities. There are many different therapies available in the Israeli prisons which address the various needs of the prison population in areas such as drugs, criminality, sex and violence.