On Monday, January 3, 2022, the European Union expressed its deep concern over the health condition of Palestinian hunger striker Hisham Abu Hawash, calling on Israel to end its administrative detention policy.
The Federation office in Palestine said in a statement: “We are seriously concerned about the critical health condition of Palestinian Hisham Abu Hawash, who has been on an extended hunger strike for 140 days to protest his administrative detention in Israeli prison since October 2020.”
The use of administrative detention without formal charge remains a longstanding concern, the office wrote in its official Twitter account.
The office further stressed that detainees have the right to be informed about charges underlying any detention, must be given a fair trial within a reasonable time or be released.
Earlier Monday, Israeli special forces stormed the Assaf Harofeh Hospital, where the striking prison Hisham Abu Hawash is held, and brutally assaulted his family.
Hisham’s brother, Imad Abu Hawash, affirmed that the Israeli forces attacked and expelled all those who were in the hospital, including his family members, journalists, and solidarity activists.
The family expressed deep concern over a possible Israeli attempt to force-feed Abu Hawash.
The family added that Abu Hawash is in very critical health condition as he is completely paralysed.
Abu Hawash, a father of five, has been detained since October 2020, where he received three administrative detention orders against him since his arrest, one of which was issued during his hunger strike and for 6 months, reduced later to four months.
He is a former prisoner who spent a total of eight years behind Israeli bars.
The Israeli occupation authorities administratively detain about 500 prisoners, from the 4,650 Palestinians it holds in its prisons, according to Palestinian human rights organisations.
