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Palestinians urge UN office in Ramallah to save striking detainees in Israel

Xinhua, May 17, 2017 Adjust font size:

Dozens of Palestinians protested Wednesday in front of the UN Ramallah Common Premises, the UN Headquarters in West Bank, protesting its "silence over the situation of striking Palestinian detainees."

Protestors stood in front of the UN office for hours, banning employees from entering the building, while they raised photos of detainees in Israeli jails and slogans reading "closed by order of striking prisoners since 31 days."

The activists said in a press statement that they hold the UN legally responsible for the lives of the striking detainees, as it is the body that is in charge of safeguarding human rights based on international humanitarian law and international law.

They called on the UN to intervene immediately to save the lives of the striking detainees and forming an international investigation committee into the "crimes" carried out by Israel against detainees in Israeli jails, especially those on hunger strike to force them to break their strike.

The statement urged the UN to hold Israel accountable to it's "violations of Geneva conventions and international laws" and oblige it to deal with Palestinian detainees under the third and fourth Geneva Conventions.

In addition, they called on the UN Humanitarian Coordinator to denounce administrative detention and "make a clear stance," as it is regarded as "a war crime and a crime against humanity."

Over 1,500 Palestinian detainees have started an open ended hunger strike on April 17, which marks national Prisoners Day, with an overwhelming majority of strikers belonging to Fateh Party, which is led by Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas.

The demands of the detainees include ending solitary confinement, ending administrative arrest, improving living conditions and enhancing medical treatment. Endit