Muslim bloc blames Israel for Gazan prisoner’s death

JEDDAH, Saudi Arabia (AA) - The Organization for Islamic Cooperation (OIC) on Friday condemned the death earlier this week of a Palestinian prisoner in Israeli custody.

Fares Baroud, 51, from Gaza City’s Al-Shati refugee camp, died suddenly on Wednesday after being transferred from an Israeli detention facility to a hospital.

In a statement, the OIC said that Baroud’s death had been the result of “inhumane treatment and the deprivation of basic rights” by the Israeli prison authorities.

The organization urged the international community to intervene on behalf of endangered Palestinians and apply pressure on Israel to halt its continued violation of Palestinian rights.

Following Baroud’s untimely death, the Palestine Liberation Organization’s Commission on Detainees’ Affairs said the prisoner had been subject to “deliberate neglect” by the Israeli prison authorities.

Baroud was arrested in 1991 and sentenced to life behind bars for his alleged involvement in the death of an Israeli settler.