Cabinet renews calls to free striking prisoners

On Tuesday 5th March, the Cabinet renewed calls on the international community to intervene and compel Israel to immediately release hunger striking prisoners, especially Samer Al-Issawi and Ayman Sharawneh, said a Cabinet press release. During its weekly meeting, chaired by Prime Minister Salam Fayyad, the Cabinet held Israel responsible for the lives of striking prisoners and considered the death of Arafat Jaradat in Israeli jails compelling for international community and human rights organizations to carry out their responsibilities. The press release said that the international community must "intervene to compel Israel to abide by international law and release the prisoners, especially the ill, veteran prisoners, children and the fifteen members of the Legislative Council, as well as end the illegal practice of administrative detention." It welcomed Denmark's calls on Israel to abide by the provisions of international law concerning the prisoners' issue, and stressed the need for the international community to adopt this position and take practical and effective measure to ensure Israeli compliance. The Cabinet condemned the escalation of racist attacks against Palestinian civilians and provocative steps by Israeli politicians towards Al-Aqsa Mosque Compound and denounced the use of nine-year-old Mustafa Wahdan as a human shield by Israeli soldiers during clashes near Ramallah. It said that such actions "violate international conventions and laws as well as violate Palestinians' rights and lives." It held the Israeli government responsible for the growing tension and provocation of religious sentiments because of these attacks against Islamic holy sites. the Cabinet equally condemned the announcement by the Israeli Ministry of Transportation on the allocation of separate buses for Palestinian citizens, a step that the Cabinet considered to be in line with the growing trends of racism against Palestinians. It affirmed that the government will continue its intensive discussions and consultations to prepare a draft budget law for 2013 and decided to provide an amount of one million dollars a month in assistance to Palestinian refugees in camps in Syria.