Wednesday August 25th, 2004 00:00 Prison authorities accelerating the debilitating effects of hunger strike

Israeli Health Minister Danny Naveh has reiterated the statement of Tzahi Hanegbi who last week declared all Israeli hospitals would be kept off-limits to the Palestinians on hunger strike in Israeli prisons. The Health Minister said if taken ill, the Palestinians would have to be treated in makeshift facilities behind bars.

With over 4,000 prisoners still on hunger strike, some now entering their 11th day the likelihood that many will be developing serious conditions has been compounded buy the confiscation of salt from prisoners’ cells. Physicians for Human Rights, a leading human rights group which has offered to monitor the strikers, has accused the prison authorities of accelerating the debilitating effects of the fast by confiscating salt and other canteen products from the prisoners.

Yesterday a Palestinian farmer was killed and his cousin seriously injured near the village of al Qarara, north of Khan Yunis. The two men along with another friend were working their land when Israeli soldiers began randomly firing at them from a military post near Kissufim. For two hours the Israelis prevented an ambulance from reaching the casualties, and witnesses reported the soldiers in fact fired at the medical team who attempted to get closer. Kamil Hassan al Astaal, age 19 bled to death before he could be taken to the hospital. His cousin remains in a serious condition having suffered multiple wounds by live bullets all over his body.

Also yesterday, Israeli forces invaded Askar refugee camp just 24 hours after withdrawing from the main city of Nablus. Having imposed a curfew and placing the camp under siege, sealing off the entrance with barbed wire, the army then rounded up several hundred Palestinian men in the local UNRWA boys’ school compound. Under the hot sun, an Army investigation unit then questioned all men between 16 and 40 years old keeping them restrained from 7am until 5pm. Despite rounding up somewhere in the region of 1,000 Palestinian men, there were no reports of any being arrested.

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