Palestinian prisoners maintain hunger strikes, discomfiting Israel

Palestinian hunger striker Samer Issawi has garnered significant media attention for breaking the record for an ongoing hunger strike, reaching 212 days without food. On Tuesday, an emergency hearing was held by Israel's Magistrate Court to deliberate demands for an appeal of his sentence, which was rejected. Speaking to Ahram Online following the decision, Issawi's sister, Sherine, said: "Once more, it's like hitting our heads against a brick wall." Sherine stated that family members had been refused access to Samer during and after the trial, as the prisoner was transferred directly to detention again. "The Israeli authorities are purposely keeping him from the public eye and not allowing any media access to him," Sherine stated in an expression her perceived helplessness. "This in addition to refusing his family any access to him since the time of his detention." Issawi, 33, who was released from jail in 2011 as part of a prisoner swap deal between Hamas and the Israeli authorities, started his hunger strike after being re-arrested in July of last year under an administrative detention law for reportedly breaking the conditions of his release. The law, which has been in place since the end of the British mandate in Palestine in 1948, allows for the arrest of Palestinians if they are deemed a "threat" to Israel's national security. A resident of the West Bank city of Jerusalem, Issawi is a member of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine, a leftist faction in the Gaza Strip that has also been involved in peaceful activism in the West Bank. In April 2002, Issawi was rounded up in the West Bank city of Ramallah and sentenced to 30 years in prison after being accused of possession of weapons and involvement in the formation of the group's military wing. Since the start of February, Issawi's health has reportedly deteriorated significantly after he decided to abstain from drinking water, taking vitamins and be subject to medical tests. "He is hanging on a very thin line between life and death; he is reaching his final stages," Sherine said. He has lately appeared very frail, and has been seen in a wheelchair as a result of his deteriorated condition. He has lost 47 kilos since his detention in July, in addition to experiencing protein shortages, sugar shortages and poor vision. Issawi's family has also been subject to attacks. most recently, on Sunday, Issawi's brother Shadi was arrested along with three others after being pulled from their homes, Sherine said. She claims that his whereabouts remain unknown since his detention two days ago. She added that she had been arrested repeatedly for criticising her brother's unjust treatment at the hands of the Israeli authorities.