If we are serious about using International Women鈥檚 Day, held annually on March 8, to campaign for the freedom and equality of women and girls, then we should not ignore Palestinians.
political prisoners
More than 1000 students marched through the streets of Jaffna demanding freedom for Tamil political prisoners on November 14.
An appeal issued by the Jaffna Universty Students Union read: "At least 132 Tamil political prisoners are languishing in the prisons of Sri Lankan state across the island. Many of them have been detained for years without trial".
More than 2000 people demonstrated on September 26 in Chile's capital Santiago to support four Mapuche Indigenous community members who have been on hunger strike in prison for 113 days.
The four were charged under a controversial anti-terrorism bill passed during the dictatorship of Augusto Pinochet.
Fans of Glasgow鈥檚 Celtic football club showed their support for more than 1500 Palestinian prisoners on hunger strike in Israeli jails, with large banners and Palestinian flags at Celtic鈥檚 May 6 football (soccer) match against fellow Scottish side St Johnstone FC.
Members of Celtic鈥檚 鈥渦ltras鈥 fan group, the聽, along with聽, lifted a huge Palestinian flag, as well as large banners with the slogans 鈥淔reedom and Dignity鈥 and 鈥淗ungering for Justice鈥.
The demands of the hunger strikers are for basic civil rights. There are 6500 Palestinian prisoners held by Israel, including 300 children. About 500 are being held under 鈥渁dministrative detention鈥 鈥 meaning they are held without trial by court orders that can be renewed indefinitely.
Despite the scale of the hunger strike and huge popular support enjoyed by the prisoners and their campaign for 鈥渇reedom and dignity鈥, Israel shows no signs of acceding to any of the prisoners鈥 demands to end their ill-treatment.
Palestinian journalist聽听丑补蝉听聽a new hunger strike in protest of how Israel has once again detained him without charge or trial.
Hunger striking prisoners Malik al-Qadi, Mahmoud al-Balboul and Mohammad al-Balboul.
In Bethlehem, hundreds of people participated in a march in solidarity with three Palestinian political prisoners on hunger strike, .
Albert Woodfox was finally released on February 19 鈥 his 69th birthday 鈥 from the notorious Angola state prison in Louisiana. He was jailed for 45 years, 43 of which were spent in solitary confinement in a two-by-three metre cell.
The nomination of Bulgarian Prisoners Rights Association (BPRA) founder Jock Palfreeman, an Australian anti-fascist imprisoned in Bulgaria, for the Bulgarian Helsinki Committee's Human of the Year award has faced a backlash from the media, right-wing politicians and neo-Nazi gangs that has forced his nomination to be withdrawn.
Khader Adnan, Palestinian political prisoner and former long-term hunger striker, won his release from administrative detention this year. In a video issued on July 19, he called for action to support fellow hunger strikers Muhammad Allan and Uday Isteiti.
Palestinian student Lina Khattab, 18, a first-year media student at Birzeit University, was .
She is also a folkloric dancer with the world-renowned El-Funoun Popular Palestinian Dance Troupe and is active in other cultural and political student activities at the university.
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