RAMALLAH, Jul 5 (NNN-WAFA) – A Palestinian prisoner in an Israeli jail, Ghadanfar Abu Atwan, continues his hunger strike today, for the 62nd day in a row, in protest of his unfair detention without charge or trial, according to the Detainees and Ex-Detainees Affairs Commission.
The commission spokesman, Hassan Abed-Rabbu, said that, Abu Atwan is suffering a severe deficiency in the amount of fluid in the body, that endangers the functions of vital organs in his body, including the heart and kidneys. He’s also experiencing permanent fatigue and headaches, as he refuses to receive any nutritional supplement.
Abu Atwan has also lost more than 15 kg of weight and is suffering from tachycardia (a condition where the heart rate increases on changing the posture, such as lying to sitting up or standing. This will cause dizziness or fainting), in addition to the inability to speak and move. He’s also experiencing psychological and nervous pressure, as a result of the deterioration of his health.
On Jun 10, the Israeli Supreme Court rejected for the second time, a petition by Abu Atwan, concerning the abolition of his administrative detention. Abu Atwan is boycotting medical examination and treatment by the Israeli prison authorities.
Israel’s widely condemned practice of administrative detention, that allows the detention of Palestinians without charge or trial, for renewable intervals ranging between three and six months, based on undisclosed evidence that even a detainee’s lawyer is barred from viewing.
Amnesty International described Israel’s use of administrative detention as a “bankrupt tactic” and has long called on Israel to bring its use to an end.
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 and human rights.
