By Qais Abu Samra
RAMALLAH (AA) – At least 24 Palestinian journalists held in Israeli prisons staged a one-day hunger strike on Monday — which also coincided with Palestinian Journalists Day — to protest their ongoing detention by the Israeli authorities, according to a statement issued by the Palestinian Prisoners Club.
“The longest serving [Palestinian] journalist in Israeli jails is Mahmoud Issa Moussa, who has been held since 1993 after having been slapped with a life term,” the club asserted.
“Seven of these [imprisoned Palestinian] journalists are being held in ‘administrative detention’ without charge or trial,” it added.
Under Israel’s longstanding policy of “administrative detention”, prisoners can be held for up to one year without charge or trial.
Since the 1996 An-Nafaq Intifada (“uprising”) — during which several Palestinians were killed and injured by Israeli forces — Palestinians have commemorated Palestinian Journalists Day on Sept. 26 of each year.
According to official Palestinian figures, over 7,000 Palestinians are currently languishing in prisons throughout Israel, roughly 700 of whom are being held in “administrative detention”.
