Palestinians demonstrate in support of hunger strike prisoners

Teenagers in a village of Nabi Saleh near the city of Ramallah protest Israeli forces as around 1,500 Palestinian political prisoners have been on hunger strike for more than one month.

An Israeli border police officer detains a Palestinian woman during a protest against the expansion of the nearby Jewish settlement of Halamish, in the West Bank village of Nabi Saleh near Ramallah. (File photo)
TRT World and Agencies

An Israeli border police officer detains a Palestinian woman during a protest against the expansion of the nearby Jewish settlement of Halamish, in the West Bank village of Nabi Saleh near Ramallah. (File photo)

Palestinian teenagers in a village of Nabi Saleh near the city of Ramallah protested against Israeli forces to show their support for Palestinian political prisoners in Israeli jails who have been on hunger strike over a month.

Through an ongoing hunger strike, Palestinian prisoners are hoping to achieve more frequent family visits, more phone calls, medical care and an end to solitary confinement.

"Each Palestinian house they have somebody in prison. You can say all Palestinians have a relative, a father, a brother, a sister in jail. Second, these people are political prisoners. It's not that they did a crime. They are freedom fighters," said Manaal Tamimi, a resident of Nabi Saleh village.

TRT World's Nicole Johnston went to Nabi Saleh to meet villagers.

Nearly 6,500 Palestinians are being held in 22 Israeli prisons, according to Palestinian officials. Around 1,500 of them have been on hunger strike over a month across Israeli prisons.

Fakhr al Bargouthi, a former prisoner, said the prisoners demand to use the kitchen, to be allowed to see their children and to be given access to books. "These are not political demands," he adds.

"The prisoner who is kept in a cell alone is only thinking only about his basic needs. They don't think about the outside world, they want to live like a human, that's all."

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