Ashton: Israel must respect human rights obligations

A spokesperson for EU High Representative Catharine Ashton has demanded that the Israeli government respect international human rights obligations regarding Palestinian prisoners and their families.

This demand came as Ashton replied to a letter sent to her by the General Union of the Palestinian Communities in Europe.

A statement issued by the Union on Thursday asserted that their spokesman had highlighted the issue of administrative detention.

According to the Union statement, administrative detention has been recently discussed on several levels in Israel during last December and January.

“We noticed a decrease in the number of administrative detainees. It dropped to 160 in January from 307 last December,” Ashton’s spokesman said. “We also noticed a change at the Israeli High Court regarding the necessity to amend the law of administrative detention.”

According to her spokesman, Ashton stressed the necessity for decisions regarding administrative detention to be made at the highest judicial levels and under high judicial supervision. She said that administrative detention is a concerning issue for the EU.

Ashton also expressed grave concerns over the deteriorating heath situation of Palestinian hunger strikers in the Israeli jails.