Palestinian dies in Israeli custody

By Awad al-Rujoub

RAMALLAH, Palestine (AA) – A Palestinian detainee died in Israeli custody on Saturday after his health deteriorated, according to a local NGO.

Mousa Haroun Abu Mahameed, 40, passed away at the Assaf Harofeh hospital, the Palestinian Prisoner Society said in a statement.

Abu Mahameed from the West Bank city of Bethlehem was arrested by Israeli forces a few days ago for entering Israeli-occupied East Jerusalem without a work permit.

“His health deteriorated in Israeli custody and rushed to hospital where he breathed his last,” the NGO said.

The Palestinian Foreign Ministry, for its part, called for launching an international investigation into Abu Mahameed's demise.

“The Israeli authorities are fully responsible for his death as a result of its policy of medical negligence against Palestinian detainees,” the ministry said in a statement.

Palestinian rights group blame medical negligence by Israeli prison authorities against Palestinian detainees for the death of dozens of prisoners in Israeli custody in recent years.

According to Palestinian figures, there are nearly 4,550 Palestinian detainees in Israeli jails, including 175 minors and 27 female detainees, along with 670 detainees held under the Israeli administrative detention without charge or trial.

*Writing by Ahmed Asmar