Four Palestinian prisoners continued their hunger strike on Saturday in protest of their administrative detention in the face of increasing pressure by Israeli prison authorities, with some experiencing severe health complications, Palestinian radio station Sawt al-Asra reported. Hunger-striker Sami Janazreh, 43, from al-Fawwar refugee camp near Hebron, entered the 59th day of his hunger strike. He suffers from a heart condition and low blood pressure, and has suffered seizures and other complications since the end of March. Since the announcement of his hunger strike, Israeli authorities have transferred Janazreh between Israeli prisons as a way of pressuring him to end his strike. Janazreh was moved Friday from solitary confinement at Israel’s Ela prison to Soroka hospital after his health deteriorated even further. Fuad Rabah Shukri Assi, 30, from Beit Liqya near Ramallah, continued his hunger strike for the 28th day after Israeli authorities extended his administrative detentio
Until now, the besieged Gaza Strip has stayed free of the novel coronavirus spreading across the world. As the Gaza Strip has been under a stringent Israeli-led blockade for nearly 13 years, the spread of the coronavirus - officially known as COVID-19 - has become the topic of discussion for many Palestinians, with some joking that the blockade was preventing them from being exposed.But as authorities in the coastal Palestinian enclave gear up to contain any potential outbreak, serious questions have arisen about the risks and implications of such a scenario. But given its already difficult humanitarian situation and high population density, an outbreak in the Gaza Strip could prove to be catastrophic, health officials have warned. "If the virus enters Gaza and spreads, it will get out of hand," Gaza Ministry of Health spokesperson Majdi Thuhair told Middle East Eye, as he explained that a severe shortage of resources and personnel would make it near impossible