Health mini. raises alarm over coronavirus outbreak among Palestinian inmates in Israeli prisons

Amid grave concerns about the health condition of hundreds of Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails in light of the coronavirus pandemic across the occupied territories, Palestinian Health Minister Mai al-Kaila has warned about an imminent outbreak of the highly contagious virus in Israel's densely crowded detention centers.

Kaila said in a statement on Sunday that Israeli prisons are potential epicenters of the pandemic, which means the lives of many prisoners, especially the elderly and the sick, are at high risk due to overcrowding and lack of personal distancing in Israeli jails.

She held Israeli authorities fully responsible for the lives of Palestinian prisoners, especially those incarcerated in Ktzi'ot Prison where more than 1,200 Palestinian inmates are currently being held.

Israel neglecting health condition of ailing Palestinian prisoner: Report

Jamal Amr suffers from tumors in the liver and kidneys, stomach and intestinal problems, urinary tract infection and nerve conditions.

The Palestinian health minister then called on the international community to pressure Israeli officials to immediately release sick and elderly prisoners, because they are experiencing major health problems.

Kaila also called for the designation of an impartial committee to take care of the health status of Palestinian prisoners and supervise their testing results.

'Coronavirus cases on rise among Palestinian inmates in Israeli jails'

Moreover, the Palestinian Prisoner's Society (PPS) announced in a statement that thirty more cases of coronavirus infection have been registered among Palestinian political detainees at the Israeli prison of Ktzi'ot.

The PPS stated that the latest figure brings up the number of Palestinian prisoners who have contracted the virus to 171.

It went on to say that Israeli prison authorities have moved all of the infected prisoners to Section 8 in neighboring Ramon Prison without providing any information about their health conditions.

The PPS called on international human rights organizations, the World Health Organization as well as the United Nations to pressure Israeli authorities to release all sick and elderly Palestinian detainees.

More than 7,000 Palestinian prisoners are currently being held in some 17 Israeli jails, with dozens of them serving multiple life sentences.

Palestinian official: 140 inmates infected with COVID-19 inside Israeli jails

Palestinian official in charge of detainees in Israeli jails says a total of 140 inmates have become infected with COVID-19.

Over 500 detainees are under the so-called administrative detention in various Israeli prisons with some prisoners being held in that condition for up to 11 years without any charges.

The so-called Israeli administrative detention is a form of imprisonment without trial or charge that allows the Israeli authorities to incarcerate Palestinians for up to six months, which could be extended for an infinite number of times.

Palestinian detainees have continuously resorted to open-ended hunger strikes in an attempt to express their outrage at the detentions.

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