- Title: Hundreds of Palestinians in Israeli jails begin hunger strike
- Date: 17th April 2017
- Summary: (SOUNDBITE) (Arabic) SENIOR HAMAS LEADER, ISMAIL RADWAN, SAYING: "Our message today in the Palestinian prisoner's day, we greet these prisoners, our heroes behind the occupation prison bars. We applaud you while you fight the battle of empty stomachs against this jailer, against the occupation. We tell you that your cause is a priority for the resistance and we will not rest before you are freed." VARIOUS OF PROTESTERS HOLDING FLAGS IN PROTEST
- Embargoed: 1st May 2017 12:34
- Keywords: Palestinian prisoners hunger strike Israel prisons authority
- Location: RAMALLAH AND BETHLEHEM, WEST BANK / GAZA CITY, GAZA / JERUSALEM / RAMLE, ISRAEL
- City: RAMALLAH AND BETHLEHEM, WEST BANK / GAZA CITY, GAZA / JERUSALEM / RAMLE, ISRAEL
- Country: Palestinian Territories
- Topics: Conflicts/War/Peace
- Reuters ID: LVA0056CSE43R
- Aspect Ratio: 16:9
- Story Text:EDITORS PLEASE NOTE: THIS EDIT CONTAINS MATERIAL WHICH WAS ORIGINALLY 4:3
Hundreds of Palestinians in Israeli jails began a hunger strike on Monday (April 17) in response to a call by prominent prisoner Marwan Barghouti, widely seen as a possible future Palestinian president.
Palestinians termed the open-ended strike a protest against poor conditions and an Israeli policy of detention without trial that has been applied against thousands since the 1980s. Israel said the move by the prisoners, many of whom were convicted of attacks or planning attacks against Israel, was politically motivated.
The protest was led by Barghouti, 58, a leader of the mainstream Fatah movement of the Palestine Liberation Organization, serving five life terms after being convicted of murder in the killing of Israelis in a 2000-2005 uprising.
The strike, if sustained, could present a challenge to Israel and raise tensions between the two sides as the 50th anniversary of the Israeli occupation of the West Bank, East Jerusalem and the Gaza Strip approaches in June. - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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