An Israeli rights group
said on Thursday that the life of an ailing Palestinian prisoner on the 71st
day of hunger strike is in danger and he is being denied regular visits by an
independent doctor.
Physicians for Human
Rights-Israel said that Akram Rikhawi had been fasting since April 12, and the
last time one of their doctors was given access to him, on June 6, he weighed
49 kilos.
"Sixteen days have now
passed since the PHR-Israel doctor determined that Akram is at immediate risk
of death, due to the combination of his protracted hunger strike and his prior
chronic conditions, including diabetes and asthma," the group said in a
statement.
A spokesperson for the
Israel Prisons Service (IPS) said Rikhawi was receiving proper care.
"The prisoner is held
in a medical facility of the Israel Prisons Service. He gets the required
medical treatment," Sivan Weizman told AFP.
"He has been taken to
hospital a number of times, where the medical staff decided to discharge him.
Should it be necessary, according to the decision of an IPS doctor, he will be
taken again."
Along with footballer
Mahmoud Sarsak, Rikhawi continued to fast after more than 1,500 other
Palestinian prisoners ended a mass hunger strike in support of demands for
better conditions in a deal with prison authorities in May.
Rikhawi, who has served two
thirds of a nine-year sentence, is agitating for early release on medical
grounds, while Sarsak, an administrative detainee from Gaza, is demanding to be
recognized as a prisoner of war.
One of the terms of the May
agreement was that those held without trial in what Israel calls
"administrative detention" would go free at the end of their current
term—unless fresh evidence emerged against them.
Administrative detention is
a procedure that allows suspects to be held without charge for renewable
periods of up to six months.
PHR-Israel said that
veteran hunger-striker Hassan Safdi, who fasted for 71 days until the May deal,
had again stopped eating on Thursday after his expected release failed to take
place.
"Safdi's
administrative detention order was renewed today for an additional six
months," the statement said, adding that he had been detained without
charge since June last year.
"PHR-Israel learnt
that Safdi's frustration at his renewed administrative detention order today
led to his decision to renew his hunger strike. A renewed hunger strike,
especially following such a long and devastating one, is an imminent danger to
his life," it said.
No comments:
Post a Comment