The Palestinian prisoner Nidal Mazen Ballout is the latest prisoner to join an open-ended hunger strike rising the number of striking prisoners in Israeli jails to three.
The Palestinian Commission of Detainees and Ex-Detainees said on Friday that Ballout was detained on October 29 for unknown charges and was subjected to tough investigation in Ashkelon and Ofer prisons. He was investigated for 20 hours per day for a whole week.
Israeli occupation authorities threatened to hold him in administrative detention according to which he will be held for an indefinite period of time without charge or trial pushing him to declare hunger strike the Commission said noting that Ballout has been on hunger strike for 29 days running.
Meanwhile the Palestinian prisoner Hisham Abu Hawash has continued his hunger strike for 102 days and Luay al-Ashkar for 47 days in protest against their administrative detention.
Hunger strikes are common among Palestinian prisoners especially administrative detainees and have helped secure concessions from Israeli authorities in the past.
Administrative detention is a policy that allows Israel to hold Palestinians for months and even years without charge or trial in total violation of the prisoners’ right to due process.
Israel currently holds 4650 Palestinians including 34 women 160 children and 500 administrative detainees.
