Terminal Palestinian inmate’s death triggers protests

The death in custody of a terminally-ill Palestinian prisoner has sparked violent protests across the West Bank.

Tuesday’s protests were held in several cities following the death of Maisarah Abu Hamdiah, a 64-year-old prisoner who had been suffering from throat cancer.

In the West Bank city of al-Khalil (Hebron), Israeli soldiers fired tear gas and rubber bullets at nearly 300 angry demonstrators. Three people were reportedly injured in another demonstration held in East al-Quds.

Acting Palestinian Authority chief, Mahmoud Abbas, laid the blame on Tel Aviv for denying Hamdiah healthcare.

“The death of Maisara Abu Hamdiah shows the Israeli government’s arrogance and intransigence over the prisoners,” Abbas said.

“We tried to get him released for treatment but the Israeli government refused to let him out, which led to his death,” he added.

Abu Hamdiah was transferred to a hospital in Tel Aviv after he fell unconscious on Monday.

More than 4,500 Palestinian prisoners are currently held in Israeli prisons, many of them without charge or trial.

On February 13, Abbas appealed to the international community to intervene in support of Palestinian prisoners on an open-ended hunger strike to protest their detention conditions in Israeli prisons.

Several demonstrations have been held across the Palestinian territories to show solidarity with the four men, who are experiencing deteriorating health conditions. The inmates were admitted to hospital on Friday.

The prisoners have been on hunger strike for months to protest against their administrative detention, a controversial practice used by Tel Aviv that allows the Israeli authorities to incarcerate Palestinians indefinitely without charging them or holding a trial.