The file photo shows Palestinian prisoner Maher al-Akhras as he is holding his wife’s hand in Israeli Kaplan hospital. (Press TV)
Ramallah, October 19 (RHC)-- As Palestinian prisoner Maher al-Akhras enters the 85th consecutive day of his open-ended hunger strike against Israel’s so-called policy of administrative detention, his organs are failing and the inmate is on the verge of imminent death.
The 49-year-old Palestinian prisoner, who is currently in the Israeli Kaplan hospital, suffers from severe fatigue and stress, pain in the joints, abdomen and stomach, and ceaseless headache as well as weight loss and a balance disorder, the Palestinian Information Center reported on Sunday.
It described Akhras’ health condition as extremely dangerous, saying that he is unable to move and that he has lost a lot of fluids and salts amid warnings of his possible martyrdom.
Physicians have already warned of damage to several organs of the Palestinian prisoner’s body, such as the kidneys, liver, and heart, and thus his life is at risk of sudden death, the report further said, adding that the inmate’s senses of hearing and speaking have also been affected negatively.
Furthermore, Palestinian human rights organizations and political parties, for their parts, have warned that Akhras would lose his life at any moment as he has entered the stage of extreme danger.
Akhras, the father of six children, was detained on July 27 and was held under the administrative detention order, with no charge. This has led him to start a hunger strike in an attempt to seek justice against the unfair detention.
“I am committed to my decision and will eat food only in my home, and I will not break my will. I am now in Kaplan Hospital, I do not drink anything but water, and I will continue doing so until I return to my house,” he said.
According to the report, Akhras, who is originally from Silat al-Dhahr town in Jenin, was arrested several times in the past and spent months behind bars in Israeli prisons.
Hundreds of Palestinian prisoners are held under administrative detention, in which Israel keeps the detainees for up to six months, a period which can be extended an infinite number of times. Women and minors are among these detainees.
Palestinian detainees have continuously resorted to open-ended hunger strikes in an attempt to express their outrage at the detention. Palestinians hold Israeli authorities fully responsible for any deterioration of the circumstances in jails.
