Palestinian prisoners in Israeli Ofer prison refuse meals, plan protests against detention conditions

Palestinian prisoners in the Israeli Ofer prison refused meals on Thursday, protesting Israeli measures against them in recent months, according to the Palestinian Commission for Prisoners' Affairs.

The commission added in a statement that prisoners are protesting the rise in the number of inmates inside cells, the delay of family visits and the lack of provision of basic needs for new detainees.

"The Ofer prison is the only Israeli detention centre in the West Bank for Palestinian detainees," Ayah Shreiteh, spokesperson for the Palestinian Prisoners' Club told The New Arab.

Seventy Palestinian administrative prisoners inside Israeli occupation jails, most of whom are held in Ofer and Negev prisons, continue to boycott the Israeli courts of all levels in protest of their administrative detention. pic.twitter.com/yPpyNZb55t

— Chris Hutchinson (@ChrisHu34451470) November 30, 2022

"It is the first place of retention for many Palestinians before transfer to other Israeli facilities, and it's usually full of detainees who haven’t been sentenced yet or are under interrogation," said Shreiteh. "More than 900 Palestinians are held in Ofer, in overcrowded cells."

According to the Commission for Prisoners' Affairs, prisoners in Ofer are demanding the Israeli jails authority to provide food, blankets and access to the store for detainees.

"When the jails authority doesn't provide these needs to detainees, it is the rest of prisoners who have to share them for them," explained Shreiteh.

"This represents a burden on prisoners and their organisational bodies that the jails authority, which is the responsibility of the jails authority," she added.

According to the statement by the Prisoners' Affairs Commission, Palestinian prisoners in Ofer are planning further protest steps in the coming days if the Israeli jails authority doesn't respond to their demands.

In October, some 200 Palestinian detainees refused food for 19 days in protest against Israel's escalation of the mass use of the 'Administrative Detention' policy, detaining hundreds of Palestinians for months without charges.

📽️ | Israel's Treatment of Palestinian Prisoners May Amount to WAR CRIMES!@MarkSeddon1962 speaks with @FranceskAlbs, UN Special Rapporteur oPt & Leah Tselem, Legal Representative of Salah Hammourihttps://t.co/awKqUM0sVe pic.twitter.com/VAMmx1QuMF

— Palestine Deep Dive (@PDeepdive) November 29, 2022

Palestinian-French human right lawyer Salah Hamouri, detained under administrative detention since March, took part in the protest in October. Israeli authorities informed Hamouri on Wednesday that he will be deported to France next Sunday.

According to the statement by the Palestinian Prisoners' Club, Israeli forces issued 1,365 administrative detention orders between January and October 2022, including 272 in August alone.

Some 4,760 Palestinian are currently held in Israeli jails according to human rights groups, including 820 detainees without charges under administrative detention orders, 33 women and 160 children.