1,500 Palestinian prisoners continue hunger strike

Placards are placed during a demonstration in support of Palestinians who are on hunger strike in Israeli prisons, at Saraya Square in Gaza City, Gaza on April 19, 2017 [Mohammed Talatene/Anadolu Agency]

More than 1,500 Palestinian prisoners held in Israeli jails are continuing their hunger strike which began on Monday in protest against the conditions they are being held in.

According to the Palestinian Prisoners and Ex-prisoners Affairs Committee, the prisoners confirmed that they are continuing with their hunger strike despite pressure and penalties exerted on them by the prison administration.

The committee said the Israel Prison Service has been moving prisoners around into different cells, storming their cells and confiscating their belongings as a form of punishment for their strike.

Read: PA calls on Marwan Barghouthi to call off hunger strike

Prisoner Said Musallam was transferred to hospital in the middle of the night after the deterioration of his health.

Marwan Barghouthi. [File photo]

Hundreds of Palestinians have organised solidarity activities in various areas of the occupied West Bank in support of the prisoners’ strike.

Senior Fatah member, Marwan Barghouthi, called for the collective action in protest against prison conditions. Prisoners are demanding family visits, appropriate medical care, ending abuse at the hands of prison guards and stopping the use of solitary confinement and administrative detention.

According to human rights data some 6,500 Palestinians including 57 female prisoners and 300 minors are currently being held in Israeli jails.

Unless otherwise stated in the article above, this work by Middle East Monitor is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License. If the image(s) bear our credit, this license also applies to them. What does that mean? For other permissions, please contact us.