A Palestinian woman is on a hunger strike for nearly a month to protest at her treatment.
Reports say Hana Shalabi is refusing to eat since she was detained on February 16. She is reportedly being held in solitary confinement.
Ms. Shalabi became the second Palestinian detainee to go on a hunger strike in quick succession.
Shalabi, 30, is reportedly a member of Islamic Jihad, which is committed to Israel’s destruction.
An independent United Nations human rights expert today voiced concerns and urged Israel to release Hana Shalabi.
“The situation of Ms. Shalabi is morbid and life-threatening.” – Richard Falk, the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the occupied Palestinian territories
Mr. Falk also urged the international community to intervene on her behalf.
He says Israel ought to end its inhumane treatment of Ms. Shalabi and Release her immediately.
He noted that Ms. Shalabi’s hunger strike “is against Israel’s abusive use of detention without charges and the degrading and physically harsh treatment administered during her arrest, interrogation, and detention process.”
The Palestinian woman detainee is said to have been treated inhumanely.
In the presence of her family she was blindfolded and treated roughly by several of the 50 Israeli soldiers sent to arrest her, as was her brother who tried to protect her, Mr. Falk reported.
The expert voiced further concern that Ms. Shalabi’s 65-year-old mother and 67-year-old father also resorted to a hunger strike on 23th February.
He denounced the silence over Ms. Shalabi’s fate in Israel and the international community.
Mr. Falk called on the Israeli authorities not to continue to disregard their responsibilities under international law.
“The abusive treatment of Palestinian prisoners by Israel remains a cause of grave concern and the international community must continue to raise its voice for those risking their own lives to end injustice.” – Mr. Falk
Earlier this year, a Palestinian detainee in Israel has been on a hunger strike for almost two months, trying to draw attention to Israel’s military justice system and its treatment of detainees.
Khader Adnan, 33, has refused food for 55 days in protest at his imprisonment without charge by Israel.
According to media reports, Adnan’s hunger strike is the longest ever waged by a Palestinian detainee.
Currently, Israel has approximately 300 Palestinians detained without charges.
Israel captured East Jerusalem along with the West Bank and Gaza in the Six-Day War in 1967, but annexed the city as its united capital in a move not recognized by the international community. The Palestinians want East Jerusalem as capital of their future State.
