Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails on Wednesday launched an open hunger strike in protest at the Palestinian Authority (PA) government’s decision to stop paying monthly salaries to the families of Gaza prisoners.
The prisoners released a statement saying that their hunger strike will continue until the PA fulfills their demands.
The PA in April 2017 decided to wage a series of punitive measures against the Gaza Strip including cutting salaries of PA employees forcing thousands of them into early retirement reducing power supplies to the enclave suspending medical referrals and halting monthly payments to the families of Gaza prisoners held in Israeli jails.
The prisoners in their statement condemned the sanctions imposed on Gaza in general and those targeting prisoners and their families in particular stressing that they are fed up with the promises they have repeatedly received without any real action on the ground.
“We have to defend our families and take our rights back by force just as we do with our jailers” the prisoners said adding that the PA government was supposed to protect their rights and take care of their families instead of depriving them of their source of income.
They concluded the statement by calling on the Palestinian people to pressure the PA to immediately backtrack on its decision.
