Head of the Legal Unit at the Palestinian Prisoners Society (PPS), Jawad Boulos, stated that detainee Omar Abu Shallal, 55, was moved to Ar-Ramla Prison Hospital, after being on hunger-strike for 28 days protesting his illegal administrative detention.Boulos visited Abu Shallal on Tuesday, and stated that the striking detainee suffered a sharp deterioration in his health condition. Abu Shallal is from the northern West Bank city of Nablus.
He added that Abu Shallal’s cellmates, Bilal Thiab and Tha’er Halahla, have been on hunger-strike since 36 days.
Boulos met Thiab and Halahla at the Prison Hospital in Ar-Ramla, and said that they also suffer bad health conditions, adding that Halahla suffers from sharp stomach ache, severe headache and deteriorating eyesight.
The three hunger-striking detainees sent a message through their lawyer stating that they are determined to continue their hunger strike, similar to the case of detainees Khader Adnan and Hanaa’ Shalabi, adding that the International Community must act and pressure Israel into halting its violations against the detainees.
In related news, detainee Hussein Abu Hadeed, 57, who suffers a heart condition, and previously had a pacemaker implant at a hospital in the United States, informed Boulos of horrific violations he was subjected to when he was kidnapped by the Israeli army.
Abu Hadeed said that he was violently attacked by the soldiers, who broke into his home, and that he lost consciousness for several hours; when he regained consciousness, he found himself detained at the Etzion military base near Bethlehem.
“It was a very cold night; I was attacked and was left on a stretcher without sheets or covers, I was moved to Ofer prison but the clinic there refused to admit me due to the seriousness of my condition”, he said, “They moved me to an Israeli hospital, but six hours later, the army challenged the physicians advice and moved be to a different detention center where they took my fingerprints and interrogated me, asking about my alleged affiliation with Hamas”.
Later on, Abu Hadeed was moved to the Ar-Ramla Prison Hospital and the doctors ordered his transfer to the Asaf Ha-Rofe hospital where he received medical treatment and checkups before he was moved, last Thursday, to the Ar-Ramla prison.
He told Boulos that he still does not know why he is being detained, as no charges were ever brought against him. He added that his health condition required his transfer to a specialized hospital.
