The mother of prisoner Thaer Halahleh, 34, from Hebron has appealed for an urgent and rapid intervention to save her son. Halahleh was arrested for the eighth time on April 10, 2013, less than a year after his release in June 2012 following a 77-day hunger strike. Halahleh has served over 6 and one-half years in Israeli prisons. He has never been charged with or convicted of any crime; he has always been held without charges or in administrative detention.
Addameer reported that Halahleh was told by a doctor in Ofer prison that he had contracted Hepatitis C. Halahleh was not ill before being imprisoned. During a dental operation at Askelan prison, non-sterile tools were used, and it is believed that this instance of medical malpractice is when Halahleh contracted the blood-borne illness.
Director of Ahrar Center, Fuad Al-Khuffash, stressed that Thaer Halahleh wasn’t suffering from any illness before his detention and added that if Halahleh is left untreated, this disease will lead to serious health deterioration. He said that the Israeli prison administration has a policy of delaying the treatment and release of sick prisoners, calling for pressure to be applied to the Israeli state to force it to stop this policy of medical abuse of Palestinian prisoners.
