Palestinian prisoners and Israel agree deal to end hunger strike

According to senior Egyptian sources, the Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas) has confirmed that an agreement has been signed between the leadership of the prisoners’ hunger strike and the Israeli prison authorities; the deal was brokered by Egyptian mediators. The deal means that the open hunger strike, which lasted for 28 days, will end in return for Israel meeting all of the prisoners’ demands, especially the ending of solitary confinement.

The agreement was confirmed by Sheikh Saleh Al-Arouri, a member of the Hamas Political Bureau and the head of prisoners’ affairs for the movement.

In a statement published by the Palestinian Information Centre, Sheikh Al-Arouri clarified that, according to the agreement, all prisoners will be removed from solitary confinement over the next 72 hours. Administrative detainees, he confirmed, will either be charged or released at the end of their current administrative sentence.