Hunger striking Palestinian administrative detainees in Israeli jails have suspended their hunger strike on Tuesday, after reaching a deal with the Israeli prison service, according to Minister Issa Qaraqe, Chairman of the Prisoners’ Affairs’ Commission.Qaraqe told WAFA that the suspension of the hunger strike came after the Israeli prison authorities assured the hunger strikers that the administrative detention of two of them – without charge or trial – will not be renewed.
The prison authorities also pledged to mull terminating the administrative detention of the remaining administrative detainees, and to halt the prison administrations’ escalatory measures against them.
The two administrative detainees whose detention without charge or trial will not be renewed are Ghassan Zawahreh and Nedal Abu-Akr.
On August 20, five administrative detainees – Nedal Abu ‘Akr, Shadi Ma‘ali, Ghassan Zawahra, Bader al-Ruzza, and Munir Abu Sharar – started a hunger strike in protest of being jailed by Israel without charge or trial.
On September 21, the Israeli Prison Service (IPS) offered Palestinian hunger strikers to release them if they agree to be expelled abroad as part of its efforts to force them to end their hunger strike. However, the proposal was rejected by all hunger strikers.
Earlier this month, the Prisoners’ Affairs Commission earlier warned of an inevitable outbreak in the situation in Israeli prisons, given Israel’s disregard to the hunger strikers’ healthcare.
Under administrative detention rules, Israel may detain Palestinians without charge or trial and on the basis of secret evidence for up to six months, indefinitely renewable by Israeli military courts.
Many human rights groups have accused Israel of using administrative detention as a routine form of collective punishment against Palestinians, as well as using it when failing to obtain confessions during interrogation.
There are around 500 detainees serving administrative detention in several Israeli jails.
Palestinian detainees have continuously resorted to open-ended hunger strikes as a way to protest their illegal administrative detention and to demand an end to this policy, which violates international law.
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