[Pnews] 107 Days of Hunger Strike: Israeli occupation military court rejects Ahmad Zahran's appeal

[Prisoner News]

https://samidoun.net/2020/01/107-days-of-hunger-strike-israeli-occupation-military-court-rejects-ahmad-zahrans-appeal/ 



  107 Days of Hunger Strike: Israeli occupation military court rejects
  Ahmad Zahran's appeal

January 7, 2020
------------------------------------------------------------------------
/Poster of Ahmad Zahran at a support protest. Photo: Quds News/

The Israeli occupation’s Ofer military court rejected the appeal of 
Palestinian prisoner Ahmad Zahran 
<https://samidoun.net/2020/01/solidarity-strikes-expand-as-ahmad-zahran-approaches-103rd-day-of-hunger-strike/>, 
on hunger strike for the 107th day against his imprisonment without 
charge or trial. The military court had repeatedly delayed in issuing 
the decision, despite Zahran’s weakening health. It earlier had 
requested that he end his hunger strike in order to be subjected to 
further interrogation, which Zahran refused. He has been jailed under 
administrative detention, Israeli imprisonment without charge or trial, 
since March 2019.

Due to the severity of his health condition, Zahran was also transferred 
to the civilian Kaplan hospital 
<https://www.wattan.tv/ar/news/298906.html> on Monday, 6 January. He has 
lost over 35 kilograms (77 pounds) of weight, is unable to walk and has 
pain throughout his body. Zahran, 42, from the village of Deir Abu 
Mishaal, launched a previous hunger strike for 39 days, which he 
suspended after a promise to not renew his detention. Instead, his 
detention was renewed in violation of the agreement, sparking him to 
launch the strike again. In the past, he has spent almost 15 years in 
Israeli prisons. Palestinian prisoners transferred to civil prisons are 
routinely shackled to their hospital beds and held under heavy military 
guard, despite their severely ill health.

/Protesters in Gaza urge freedom for Zahran, 7 January. Photo: Hadf News/

On the 90th day of his hunger strike, Israeli interrogators appeared at 
the Ramon prison clinic seeking to interrogate Zahran. Military 
prosecutors claimed a need to interrogate him in order to direct the 
military court to delay or refuse his appeal. He had not been subjected 
to interrogation at any time prior to or earlier during his strike, 
leading Due to his severe health state, the interrogation could not 
continue.

Zahran’s lawyers emphasized that they would continue the legal battle, 
while Palestinian prisoners inside Israeli jails launched further 
solidarity strikes to demand his freedom. In a statement, the 
Palestinian Prisoners’ Society and the Palestinian Prisoners Study 
Center noted that Israeli intelligence agencies are working to thwart 
any agreement to end Zahran’s strke and secure his freedom. They said 
that the intelligence agencies have interfered to prevent an agreement 
between Zahran and the prison administration in an attempt to deny him a 
victory in the hunger strike.

Several Palestinian prisoners, including Jamil Ankoush, have been 
carrying out extended strikes in support of Zahran, while a group of 
prisoners in the Israeli occupation Gilboa prison 
<http://hadfnews.ps/post/63661> began a one-day strike on Tuesday, 7 
January. This is one of a series of rolling strikes called by the 
Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine in Israeli prisons. Nader 
Sadaqa, Ahmad Yassin, Majd Ba’ajawi, Ahmed Saleh, Badr al-Ruzza, Mahmoud 
Tayem, Khaled Kiblawi, Ahmad Issa, Baraa Abu Omar and Moataz al-Suruji 
joined in the collective solidarity action. The PFLP prison branch 
emphasized that these were initial steps and that the protests would be 
escalated if Zahran is not released.

/Protesters in Gaza urge freedom for Zahran, 7 January. Photo: Hadf News/

Wael Jaghoub 
<https://samidoun.net/2019/12/palestinian-prisoners-leader-isolated-struggle-grows-as-zahran-reaches-99-days-of-hunger-strike/>, 
the leader of the PFLP’s branch in Israeli prisons, was ordered to 
isolation <http://hadfnews.ps/post/63648/> as the prisoners announced 
their collective steps of struggle. On 6 January, Jaghoub was barred by 
the Israeli occupation prison administration from receiving family 
visits for six months. When his family members arrived at the prison 
gate on Monday, they were told they could not see him and that the ban 
would be in place for six months.

After Jaghoub’s fellow prisoners in Hadarim were informed of the 
decision, they immediately began to protest. The family were then 
allowed to visit for 15 minutes only in a completely isolated room. 
After the visit was over, the family members’ permits to enter were 
taken from them. Palestinian prisoners are routinely denied family 
visits because they are imprisoned within ’48 Palestine and their family 
members from the West Bank or Gaza require special permits to allow 
their entry. Family members are repeatedly denied these permits on the 
grounds of spurious “security concerns.”

Palestinians in Rafah, Gaza <http://hadfnews.ps/post/63672/>, organized 
a demonstration to support Zahran’s strike and demand his freedom. Ahmad 
Barakat, speaking on behalf of the PFLP, called for international 
organizations and institutions, particularly the International Committee 
of the Red Cross, to intervene and stop the policy of administrative 
detention. There are approximately 450 Palestinians held in 
administrative detention, of around 5,000 total Palestinian political 
prisoners held in Israeli jails. These detention orders, introduced to 
Palestine by the British colonial mandate and then adopted by the 
Zionist project, are issued for up to six months at a time but are 
indefinitely renewable on the basis of “secret evidence.” Palestinians 
may be jailed for years at a time due to indefinitely renewable 
detention orders.

/Protesters in Gaza urge freedom for Zahran, 7 January. Photo: Hadf News/

Barakat also urged Palestinians and supporters to participate in actions 
and demonstrations to support the prisoners, including upcoming 
mobilizations to free imprisoned PFLP General Secretary Ahmad Sa’adat 
and all Palestinian prisoners 
<https://samidoun.net/2019/12/call-to-action-free-ahmad-saadat-and-all-palestinian-prisoners-15-29-january-2020/>, 
planned for 15 to 29 January.

A further demonstration in support of Zahran and his fellow prisoners 
has been called for Wednesday, 8 January at 3:00 pm at Manara Square in 
Ramallah, Palestine.

Zahran’s strike is also accompanied by escalating tensions in Israeli 
prisons <http://hadfnews.ps/post/63661> overall. In Ramon prison, the 
Palestinian prisoners announced that they were dissolving organizational 
representation, a protest step indicating that they expect their demands 
to receive a serious reply. This comes in response to the repressive 
invasion and transfer in section 6 of the prison. 120 Palestinians 
jailed there were suddenly transferred to Nafha prison and denied the 
opportunity to bring their belongings or even their outer clothes, 
despite the cold weather.

*Samidoun Palestinian Prisoner Solidarity Network reiterates our full 
and unconditional solidarity with Ahmad Zahran and all Palestinian 
prisoners struggling for freedom. We urge all supporters of justice 
around the world to take a stand with Ahmad Zahran, whose life is on the 
line as he struggles to bring an end to administrative detention. 
International solidarity can be important to show Palestinian prisoners 
like Ahmad Zahran that they are not forgotten and to put pressure on the 
Israeli state – and the governments that support it – to support Zahran 
in achieving victory for justice and freedom.*

*Join the call to action: 
https://samidoun.net/2019/12/ahmad-zahran-heads-toward-100-days-of-hunger-strike-demand-his-freedom/*

-- 
Freedom Archives 522 Valencia Street San Francisco, CA 94110 415 
863.9977 https://freedomarchives.org/
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