Zakariyya Daoud, a former Palestinian political prisoner, who got seriously ill while in Israeli prisons, and was only released on August 22, 2011, died of cancer on Monday, he was diagnosed in prison Israeli prisons and was deprived of the needed and specialized medical attention.Israel released Daoud, 43, after he spent nine years out of a 16-year sentence due to the ongoing decline in his health condition. He is a father of four children; Ahmad, 19, Wisal, 20, Malak, 14, and Dalal, 13, the Maan News Agency reported.
He was kidnapped and imprisoned by Israel on February 10th, 2003, the Palestinian Prisoners Society (PPS) reported.
The PPS said that Zakariyya had cancer that spread in his body due to the lack of specialized medical treatment in Israeli prisons.
He used to be a member of the Palestinian Soccer Team, and a member of the soccer team in his town, Al-Khader, near Bethlehem. His brother is also a soccer player, in addition to his son, who currently plays with the same team his father once played on.
After his release from Israeli prisons, Palestinian athletes and soccer fans, held a massive ceremony to honor him at the Al-Khader soccer field on August 28, just before a match was held there.
The PPS issued a press release stating that with the death of Zakariyya, the number of Palestinian detainees who died in prison arrives to 204, while the vast majority of them died due to torture, the lack of adequate medical attention, and due to being shot or continuously beaten after or during their arrest.
The PPS called on the international community to ensure that all ill detainees in Israeli prisons and detention facilities receive all needed medical help and attention.
