Palestinian detainee Mahmoud Saada facing serious health concerns on 17th day of hunger strike

Palestinian prisoner Mahmoud Saada is currently on his 17th day of hunger strike in Israeli prisons, facing serious health concerns while being denied access to a lawyer and under extended interrogation.

Hamdan and Nurridin Saada, the brothers of Mahmoud Saada from the town of Huwarra in Nablus, confirmed that Mahmoud is continuing on hunger strike. He has been held under interrogation since his arrest on 16 February 2017. He was sent to the hospital from Jalameh detention center on 26 March due to his deteriorating health.

Mahmoud has a kidney and colon condition and had two surgeries in 2015. The family has had no communication with Mahmoud or with medical personnel as to his health condition or the location of the health facility. On 27 March the Israeli military court ordered an additional nine days of detention which can continue to be renewed for further interrogation.

His lawyer was not permitted to be at his Court appearance and Mahmoud has only been given access to this lawyer once since his arrest. Mahmoud is the father of four children, aged 2 months through 10 years.

His brothers provided the following medical report on Mahmoud’s pre-existing health conditions from the Specialized Arab Hospital in Nablus: