Palestinian journalista new hunger strike in protest of how Israel has once again detained him without charge or trial.
On January 15, al-Qiq wasat a military checkpoint near in the occupied West Bank. He was returning from a protest inat the time.
Since then, he has been under interrogation while his detention wasٱԻ.
He announced his hunger strike after he was issued with an administrative order — special orders issued by Israeli courts that allow prisoners to be held indefinitely without trial. Orders for administrative detention can be indefinitely renewed.
Less than a year ago, al-Qiq refused meals for more than 90 days while being held indefinitely without trail, to protest the use of the administrative detention order against him.
Al-Qiq ended his hunger strike after Israel agreed not to renew the administrative detention order. He was released in May.
, al-Qiq’s wife, said the latest administrative detention order was proof of Israel’s failure to find any evidence on which it could indict her husband.
At the time of his arrest last month, a spokesperson for , Israel’s domestic spy agency,The Jerusalem Postthat al-Qiq was arrested “on the basis of suspicions of involvement in incitement to terrorism against Israel and renewed activity with Hamas”.
But the Israeli authorities have yet to present any evidence to support those accusations. That is despite Israel expandingits definition of “incitement” over the past two years.
As a result, many Palestinians — including — have beenwith the offence, based on comments they have made or content they have viewed on the Internet.
In late January, al-Qiq wasinat thein Israel.
His hunger strike coincides with the publication of a newdocumenting a surge in violent raids conducted by theagainst Palestinian prisoners.
Jointly issued by a number of Palestinian human rights groups, the report states that dozens of aggressive night-time raids were conducted against Palestinians held in Israeli jails at the end of January and start of February.
Some of the raidsafter two wardens at separate prisons were, according to Israeli media,with a screwdriver, suffering light injuries.
, the Palestinian Authority head of prisoner affairs, reported that prisoners were forced to fully undress and stand naked outside, in the cold weather, while guards ransacked their belongings.
Otherby officers at Nafha prison were, however, before the stabbing incidents. Some prisoners were reportedly assaulted during those raids.
In another case of, the Israeli prison authorities also reportedly15 men in solitary confinement after the stabbing incident at Nafha.
About 530 Palestinians are now beingunder administrative detention by Israel. A total of 590 Palestinians — including 128 children — were arrested by Israel in January alone.
[Reprinted from .]