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Israel legalizes force-feeding of Palestinian hunger striking prisoners

Xinhua, July 30, 2015 Adjust font size:

Israel's parliament approved on Thursday a bill to allow force-feeding of Palestinian hunger striking prisoners, triggering intense opposition by the country's medical association.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's right-wing coalition passed the bill after hours of debate, with 46 votes in favor and 40 against in the 120-seat Knesset (parliament).

But the Israel Medical Association, which considers force-feeding as a form of torture, urged doctors not to take part in forced feeding of prisoners.

The association said in a statement that later Thursday it will file a petition to the Supreme Court, asking it to cancel the law.

The UN Special Rapporteur on Tuesday urged Israeli lawmakers to halt the process of authorizing force-feeding.

The government has long been fearing that Palestinian hunger strikers could die in prison, sparking a wave of protest in the occupied West Bank.

The bill was approved less than a month after Israel was forced to release Khader Adnan, a famous former Palestinian prisoner whose 56-day-long hunger strike brought him to the brink of death. Endit