Addameer reported that nine prisoners are currently on hunger strike in occupation prisons as of June 17, 2013 – 4 Palestinian prisoners being held under administrative detention and 5 prisoners who are Palestinian and hold Jordanian citizenship. The striking prisoners are as follows:
1. Ayman Hamdan of Bethlehem, on hunger strike for 51 days, since April 28, 2013, in Ofer prison; protesting his administrative detention.
2. Emad Al-Batran of Hebron, on hunger strike for 42 days, since May 7, 2013, protesting his administrative detention; he is currently in Ramle prison clinic since May 26 due to the deterioration of his health.
3. Ayman Al-Tabeesh, 33, of the Hebron area, on hunger strike for 26 days since May 23, 2013, when a 4-month administrative detention order was issued against him following his arrest on May 9, 2013. He is currently in Ofer prison.
4. Adel Hareebat, 38, also of Hebron area, has been on hunger strike for 26 days since May 23, 2013 when a 6-month administrative detention renewal was issued for him. He had already been held for 6 months prior since his detention in November 2012. He is currently held in Ofer prison. He has previously spent 10 years altogether in occupation prisons, including 3 years in administrative detention.
Five prisoners who hold Jordanian citizenship have been on hunger strike for 47 days, in one collective strike with three collective demands. All are currently held in Ramle prison clinic due to their health deterioration as a result of the strike.
Addameer Prisoner Support and Human Rights Association’s lawyer, Faris Ziyad, visited the clinic in Ramleh Prison on 2 June 2013. where he met with two Palestinian prisoners who hold Jordanian citizenship, Abdallah Barghouthi and Muhammad Rimawi. They are both on hunger strike along with three other Jordanian prisoners: Hamza Othman, Alaa Hamad, and Munir Mar’i.
5. Abdallah Barghouthi, 41, is from the village of Beit Rima in the governorate of Ramallah and holds Jordanian citizenship. He began his hunger strike on 2 May 2013 while in Gilboa prison; he wwas transferred to a prison section with civilian prisoners for 14 days, and then transferred to Al-Jalameh Prison on 15 May 2013 for interrogation concerning his hunger strike. On 19 May 2013, he was brought to the hospital in Ramleh Prison. He refused water for the entirety of his interrogation in Al-Jalameh. Barghouthi received the highest sentence handed down by a military court in the history of the Israeli occupation (67 life sentences) and has been detained since 5 March 2003.
6. Muhammad Rimawi, 47, is from the village of Beit Rima in the governorate of Ramallah and holds Jordanian citizenship. His open hunger strike began on 2 May 2013 in Ramon Prison. He was transferred to Al-Ramleh hospital on 22 May 2013 and has only been drinking water. With respect to his health, Rimawi clarified that,before the hunger strike,he suffered from inflammation of the lungs and the intestines, as well as Mediterranean fever. As a result of the hunger strike, he is currently suffering from extreme fatigue. He confirmed that the prison administration is refusing to provide him with the medication he requires for these pre-existing health complications unless he stops his strike, an offer that he has categorically refused. Rimawi has been detained since 19 October 2001 and was given three life sentences.
7. Hamza Othman holds Jordanian citizenship and has been on hunger strike since 2 May 2013; he is currently in Ramleh prison clinic.
8. Alaa Hamad holds Jordanian citizenship and has been on hunger strike since 2 May 2013; he is currently in Ramleh prison clinic.
9. Muneer Mar’i holds Jordanian citizenship and has been on hunger strike since 2 May 2013; he is currently in Ramleh prison clinic.
Barghouthi and Rimawi confirmed to Ziyad of Addameer that the the 5 Jordanian prisoners who announced their hunger strike on 2 May 2013 from Ramon, Naqab, and Gilboa Prisons are united in their demands, asserting the strength of their resolve and their willingness to engage in a prolonged battle. He said that they will not stop their hunger strike until their demands are met. Their protest was sparked by the repeated refusal of family visits.
The demands of the Jordanian hunger strikers are as follows:
1. That they be released from Israeli prisons and serve their sentences in Jordanian prisons according to the Wadi Araba Agreement between Jordan and Israel. This agreement was previously applied to the case of prisoner Sultan Al-Ajouli, who was transferred to Jordanian custody in accordance with the agreement.
2. That the Occupation disclose the whereabouts of missing Jordanian prisoners, of which there are 20.
3. That the Occupation remove martyrs from the ‘numbered graves’, where prisoners who died in custody are currently kept in nameless graves.
