Palestinian prisoner Malik Al-Qadi, who ended his 70-day hunger strike earlier this week in protest of being held by Israel in administrative detention, will be transferred to a Palestinian hospital on Saturday, the Palestinian Committee of Prisoners’ Affairs said, According to the Palestinian media.
Al-Qadi was transferred in the morning from the Israeli Wolfson Medical Center to the Istishari Arab Hospital in the occupied West Bank city of Ramallah, the sources explained.
Al-Qadi suffers a very difficult health condition which needs special medical care as he still suffers heart and lung problems after ending his 70-day hunger strike last week.
Committee head Issa Qaraqe said that al-Qadi would be transferred from the Israeli Wolfson Medical Center to the Istishari Arab Hospital in the occupied West Bank city of Ramallah
Qaraqe said that al-Qadi’s health remained very fragile two days after having ended his hunger strike with persistent heart and lung issues, and that he would remain in the intensive care unit until he recovered.
Al-Qadi ended his hunger strike on Wednesday, along with fellow prisoners Muhammad and Mahmoud Balboul, after an agreement with the Israeli Prison Service not to renew their administrative detentions.
Muhammad Balboul, 26, had refused food for 77 days since July 7, while his 23-year-old brother Mahmoud had been on hunger strike 79 days since July 5, and al-Qadi, 25, declared his hunger strike on July 16.
Qaraqe said in a statement on Wednesday that Muhammad and Mahmoud Balboul were set to be released on Dec. 8, while Malik al-Qadi would be released on Sep. 22, and that all three of their administrative detentions would not be renewed.
The three had initially launched their hunger strikes amid a mass movement across Israeli prisons in solidarity with hunger-striking prisoner Bilal Kayid, who after 71 days suspended his hunger strike after striking a deal with Israel to end his administrative detention sentence. He was reportedly set to be released on Dec. 12.
Kayid was one of the most high-profile hunger strikers since Palestinian journalist Muhammad al-Qiq came near death during a 94-day hunger strike protesting his administrative detention order, before he was finally released in May.
Rights groups have claimed that Israel’s administrative detention policy, which allows detention for three- to six-month renewable intervals based on undisclosed evidence, has been used as an attempt to disrupt Palestinian political processes, notably targeting Palestinian politicians, activists, students, and journalists.
Although Israeli authorities claim the withholding of evidence during administrative detention is essential for state security concerns, rights groups have instead claimed the policy allows Israeli authorities to hold Palestinians for an indefinite period of time without showing any evidence that could justify their detentions.
According to Addameer, as of August, 7,000 Palestinians were being held in Israeli prisons, 700 of whom were being held under administrative detention.
