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DATE: 19/05/2004 TIME :15:52<br>
Israel Refuses Palestinian Prisoners' Demands<br><br>
GAZA, May 19, 2004 (WAFA) - Head of the Palestinian prisoners' club
Issa<br>
Qaraqea said on Wednesday that the Israeli jails' administration
still<br>
refuses to abide by the prisoners' demands despite their 9 day-old<br>
hunger-strike.<br>
.<br>
Qaraqea said "the prisoners have been on a hunger-strike for nine
days and<br>
they intend to continue until the Israel jail's administration
approves<br>
their demands'.<br>
.<br>
Qaraqea explained that the Palestinian prisoners inside the Israeli
Hadarim<br>
jail held the open-ended hunger strike in protest against the
jail's<br>
administration measures, such as daily strip-searching, imposing
financial<br>
fines on the prisoners, detention in solitary confinement for several
days<br>
as well as barring them from their families' visits.<br>
.<br>
Qaraqea warned "the prisoners said that if the Israeli jails'
administration<br>
doesn't comply with their demands they will launch a water-strike and
this<br>
very dangerous on the prisoners' health, especially those who have
been<br>
suffering from diseases.".<br>
. Qaraqea added that the Israeli jails' administration has even
confiscated<br>
their radios and personal objects as bars access of newspapers in
addition<br>
to barring their lawyers from visiting them.<br>
.<br>
' International Red Cross Committee has intervened in order to pressure
the<br>
jails' administration to end the humiliating and inhumane practices
against<br>
the Palestinian prisoners, but the jails' administration haven't
responded',<br>
he said.<br>
.<br>
Qaraqea added that stripping Palestinian prisoners has been a policy
adopted<br>
by the Israeli jails' administration for years, where all the prisoners,
men<br>
and women, are being stripped off their clothes and are submitted
to<br>
unethical practices.<br>
.<br>
Qaraqea concluded that Palestinians cannot even organize activities
in<br>
solidarity with the prisoners due to the Israeli military escalation in
the<br>
Gaza Strip, especially in the southern city of Rafah.<br><br>
.2004 Palestine News Agency - WAFA. All rights reserved ©<br><br>
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