Administrative detainee Mohammad Allan who has been on hunger strike for the past 59 days has lost consciousness this morning, Friday 14 August 2015, and was placed on life support devices by doctors in Barzilai hospital in Askalan. Addameer Prisoner Support and Human Rights Association learntthat Allan’s health has deteriorated overnight and he eventually lost consciousness around 9 am this morning. Doctors reported to Allan’s mother and his lawyer that he was suffering from continuous shivering and seizures and was unable to breathe before he lost consciousness. Doctors then intervened urgently in light of Allan’s medical condition and proceeded to resuscitate him, placed him on a life supporting respirator and administered minerals and nutrients to his body. Allan remains in an unstable and critical condition.
Mohammad Allan started an open-ended hunger strike on the 16th of June 2015 in protest to the renewal of his administrative detention without trial for further six months in May. Israeli occupation authorities have refused Allan’s call, who is a lawyer himself, to be released and instead tried to coerce Allan to end his hunger strike.
Addameer condemns Israel’s actions towards Mohammad Allan and holds Israeli authorities liable for Allan’s current condition. Allan’s detention without charge or trial for the past 9 months violates international norms and standards that prohibit the systematic use of administrative detention by the occupying power and limit its use under the Fourth Geneva Convention for imperative security reasons and limits it within the confines of the fundamental guarantees of fair trial. Allan was denied a fair trial and placed under arbitrary detention without being informed of his charges or given the prospect to challenge his detentionbefore a fair and independent judiciary.
Addameer further denounces Israel’s attempts to undermine the right of Palestinian prisoners and detainees to challenge the violations they face including the arbitrary detention without charge or trial through the peaceful protest means of hunger strikes. Israel has intentionally allowed Allan’s situation to deteriorate to this point and refused to end his arbitrary detention in an attempt to deprive Palestinian detainees from their fundamental right to peaceful protest and ban them from demanding justice, dignity and their basic rights as enshrined under the Geneva Convention and human rights treaties.
Moreover, Addameer condemns Israel’s escalation in prisons of the south (Nafha, Rimon, Eshel) this morning where several sections were closed and prisoners were banned from collectively holding the Friday prayer, and demands the immediate and unconditional release of Mohammad Allan and putting an end to his arbitrary administrative detention.