Families must get access to Palestinian strikers: EU
JERUSALEM: Israel must urgently allow Palestinian prisoners who are in the advanced stages of a hunger strike receive all necessary medical treatment and family visits, the European Union said yesterday.
In a statement, the EU delegations in Jerusalem and Ramallah said they were worried about the failing health of several prisoners, two of whom were yesterday marking 70 days without food, passing what medics say is the point of no return in terms of recovery.
“The EU missions in Jerusalem and Ramallah are concerned about the deteriorating health condition of the Palestinians held in administrative detention in Israel who have been on hunger strike for more than two months,” it said.
“The EU requests the government of Israel to make available all necessary medical assistance and to allow family visits as a matter of urgency,” the statement said.
There are five Palestinian prisoners who have been refusing food for between seven and 10 weeks in protest at their being held by Israel without charge, under a procedure known as administrative detention.
Bilal Diab, 27, and Thaer Halahla, 33, have both gone 10 weeks without food, sparking widespread concern among medical and legal professionals.
Israel has also prevented almost all of them from having family visits since they began refusing food.
The EU statement reiterated its opposition to Israel’s use of administrative detention under which suspects can be held without charge indefinitely, for renewable periods of up to six months.
“Detainees have the right to be informed of the reasons for their detention and be subject to a fair trial without undue delay,” the statement said.
“The EU is also following closely the ongoing hunger strike by several hundreds of Palestinian prisoners, and calls for the full respect of international human rights obligations toward all prisoners.”
Three weeks ago, the hunger strikers were joined by another 1,200 detainees who began refusing food on April 17 in a bid to demand better conditions. That number has now grown to approximately 1,600 prisoners, the Israel Prisons Service said on Monday.