Israeli court delays review of Janazrah’s detention; hunger strike continues

hunger-strike

The Israeli supreme court continued the administrative detention without charge or trial of Sami Janazrah on Tuesday, 10 May. Janazrah is a Palestinian prisoner who has been on hunger strike for 69 days, reported the Palestinian Prisoners’ Society.

Palestinian lawyer Jawad Boulos said that the court gave the military prosecution 7 days to present the results of their investigation of the evidence; he is held at Soroka hospital. He has been imprisoned under administrative detention since 15 November 2015.

Earlier on Tuesday, Janazrah refused a meeting with the representative of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) when Israeli guards insisted that his hands and feet remain shackled to the hospital bed during the meeting.

Ofer military court also rejected on Tuesday, 10 May an appeal of administrative detention by Adib Mafarjah. The lawyer of Mafarjah, on hunger strike for 37 days alongside Fouad Assi, both held under administrative detention without charge or trial, raised an alert about Mafarjah’s health. He is held in solitary confinement in Gilboa prison. His lawyer said that he has been vomiting blood and experiencing pain; he is refusing vitamins and medical examinations.

Meanwhile, Assi, also on hunger strike for 37 days, was transferred again to isolation in Ashkelon prison. He had previously been held in solitary confinement in Ella prison and before that in solitary confinement in the Ketziot Negev prison. Assi has been imprisoned since 9 August 2015. Riyad al-Ashqar of the Palestinian Prisoners Center for Studies said that the frequent transfer of hunger strikers was meant to pressure prisoners to end their strike through increasing their suffering.