Three Palestinians held by Israel end hunger strike

By Anees Bargouthi

RAMALLAH, Palestine (AA) - Three Palestinian prisoners have ended their hunger strike after reaching an agreement with Israeli authorities for their release, a senior Palestinian official said Wednesday.

"Brothers Mohamed Balboul, 25, and Mahmoud Balboul, 22, will be released from custody on Dec. 8 and will not have their administrative detentions renewed," Issa Qaraqe, head of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO)’s committee on detainees, said in a statement.

The third prisoner, Malek al-Qadi, 19, "will be released tomorrow, Sept. 22, ending his [period of] administrative detention," Qaraqe added.

Mohamed Balboul and his brother Mahmoud had refrained from eating food for 79 and 76 days respectively to protest their ongoing detention without charge or trial.

Malek al-Qadi, for his part, had waged a 68-day hunger strike.

On Tuesday, scores of Palestinian prisoners in jails throughout Israel had declared an open-ended hunger strike to demand the trio’s release and an end to Israel’s longstanding policy of "administrative dentition".

Under Israel's administrative detention policy, prisoners can be held for up to one year without charge or trial.

According to official Palestinian figures, over 7,000 Palestinians are currently languishing in Israeli prisons, roughly 700 of whom are being held in administrative detention.