Palestinian prisoners in Israel protest jail conditions, prisoners' families hold a sit-in

PressTV - Palestinian prisoners in Israel protest jail conditions:

Sat May 14, 2011 6:31PM
Yousef al-Helou, Press TV, Gaza

"In a gathering outside the UN office in Gaza, the families of Palestinian prisoners held a sit-in to show solidarity with their loved ones who are currently on hunger strike inside Israeli jails.

The prisoners some of whom have spent more than 25 years behind bars have gone on hunger strike in protest against Israel's solitary confinement policy. Prisoners say they are denied their basic human rights, including the right to have family visitations.

The protest was also attended by a wide range of Palestinian organizations, who called on international human rights groups to get immediately involved in playing an active role in pressuring Israeli authorities to grant Palestinian prisoners more rights.

Palestinian rights groups have long insisted that prisoners are subjected to mistreatment and torture in Israeli detention facilities and that almost half of those arrested before the 1993 Oslo Agreement have been in Israeli jails for more than 20 years.

They say many prisoners need immediate medical treatment and Israeli authorities are failing to provide it even when their conditions prove to be critical.

Israel claims it's authorities treat prisoners and detainees with dignity and honor, but currently there are at least 8000 Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails, many without ever having been charged with a crime, which is in violation of the Geneva Convention.



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