The Jordanian political detainee Hamad Al-Kharsha continues his open-ended hunger strike for 227 consecutive days in protest his arbitrary detention, amid reports of serious health deterioration.
According to his family, Hamad Al-Kharsha has lost two-thirds of his body weight as he is only 35 kilograms now.
The family warned that their son is at real risk and close to death, pointing out that he is prevented from meeting his lawyer or handing over his last will.
For his part, Al-Kharsha’s lawyer, Louay Obeidat, affirmed that the State Security Court refused to grant him a bail release.
On January 13, 2022, Al-Kharsha was detained over online posts, and brought before the State Military Security Court on charges of “undermining the regime.”
Jordan has been downgraded from ‘obstructed’ to ‘repressed’ in a 2021 report by the CIVICUS Monitor, a global research collaboration that rates and tracks fundamental freedoms in 197 countries and territories.
According to the report, the suspension of the last remaining Teachers’ Association, internet shutdowns, and restrictions enforced on journalists, civil society, and activists have led to the downgrade.
For many years, Jordan was classified by Freedom House as a partly-free country. But as of 2021, Jordan’s classification fell back and was classified as not free.
