Nearly 2,000 Palestinian started a mass hunger strike, demanding the improvement of prisoners who are held captive in zionist israeli prisons.

Approximately 2 thousand Palestinian political prisoners in israeli prisons began a collective hunger strike yesterday. Prisoners underlining the difficult conditions in their prisons and demanding that their basic rights be granted.

The Palestinian Information Center lists what the prisoners want to achieve by hunger strike:

1- A public telephone connection to all prisons and departments so that prisoners can make phone calls with their families.

2- Visits

A. Re-launch of second visits stopped by the Red Cross.

B- Visits should be held regularly every two weeks and not canceled by anyone.

C- No one's visit to the first and second degree relatives of the prisoner shall be prevented.

D- The duration of the visit to extend from 45 minutes to an hour and a half.

E- Permission of a prisoner to take photographs with his family every three months.

F- Making appropriate places for the families to not make them wait on prison doors.

G- Children under the age of 16 and their grandchildren are allowed to enter the prison every visit.

3- Health file

A- Closure of Er-Ramle Prison Hospital as it is not suitable to provide necessary treatment.

B- Termination of medical negligence policy.

C- Regular health checks of prisoners.

D- Surgery to be done quickly and without delay.

E- Import of specialist doctors from outside.

F- Release of ill prisoners, especially disabled prisoners and prisoners with chronic illnesses.

G- Not paying for treatment costs.

4. Meeting all needs of Palestinian female prisoners, such as private transfers and unobstructed interviews with their relatives during the visit.

5- Transfer

A- To be treated as human during transportation.

B- Direct transfer of prisoners from hospitals and courts to prisons and not to be kept at transit points.

C- Making the transition points suitable for human use and giving food to the prisoners.

6- The addition of satellite channels to the broadcasts according to the needs of prisoners.

7- Air-conditioning to prisons, especially in Mecdu and Celbu prisons.

8- Reopening of kitchens in all prisons and leaving the administration to be taken by prisoners.

9- During the visits, books, newspapers, clothes, food items and special items should be allowed to be brought.

10- Ending the isolation policy.

11- Ending the administrative prison term policy.

12- Re-granting of education at Hebron Open University.

13- To allow prisoners to enter university entrance exams.

Hunger strike launched at Palestinian prisoner's day

Hunger strike start on as April 17th the date which was selected as Palestinian Prisoners' Day, since 1974.

From different political views, Palestinian prisoners began a hunger strike in six different prisons. Currently there are about 6,500 Palestinian prisoners in Israel.

Single-person cell punishment for hunger strike

On the other hand, it was stated that the zionist authorities began to apply disciplinary punishments on Palestinian prisoners who started hunger strike to improve the conditions of bondage. The israeli prison administration began operating disciplinary punishments for Palestinian prisoners who started a mass hunger strike. It was reported that many detainees were transferred to single-person cells.

Israeli Minister of Public Security Gilad Erdan has been instructed not to engage in negotiations with the prisoners who started the hunger strike. Erdan also decided that the prisoners should be gathered in Negev prison and that a field hospital should be built in front of the prison. Erdan's decision was stated to have taken to prevent detainees from being transported to other hospitals during hunger strike.

Erdan was also instructed to conduct precise inspections in order to prevent the establishment of links between prisoners.

ILKHA