February 20, 2012
An Israeli official has described 63-day Palestinian hunger striker Khader Adnan as an ?Islamic Jihad terrorist? without producing any evidence to prove his claim.
Adnan, a 33-year-old baker, has been on hunger strike since shortly after he was detained in a late-night raid on December 17.
He is being held under what Israeli law calls administrative detention, meaning he can be held without trial or charges indefinitely.
The case has drawn widespread condemnation of the Israeli policy, with rights groups urging the Jewish state to release Adnan or charge him with an offense.
But Ofir Gendelman, the Israeli Prime Minister?s spokesman to the Arab media, provoked anger by calling Adnan an ?Islamic Jihad terrorist? on Twitter.
He also said that Israel should not release Adnan as he would ?kill our kids.?
Ofir Gendelman
@ofirgendelman#khaderadnan is an Islamic Jihad terrorist. This organization is outlawed in US,EU,UK. A terrorist on a hunger strike is still a terrorist.
Ofir Gendelman
@ofirgendelmanThose who call on Israel to release #khaderadnan, an Islamic Jihad terrorist, so he could kill our kids, wouldn?t want him near their kids
Gendelman?s comment provoked a barrage of criticism, with Yousef Munayyer, Executive Director of the Palestine Center in Washington urging him to produce evidence of the claims.
Yousef Munayyer
@YousefMunayyer.@ofirgendelman if there?s evidence, charge him and try him, if not, release him. I know these democratic norms may seem foreign to you
Under Israel?s military law, prisoners can be held in administrative detention for up to six months without charge or trial. The detention can be renewed at the end of the period, effectively allowing Israel to hold Palestinians in jail indefinitely.
Israel claims that Adnan is a threat to public safety, but has yet to produce any evidence for the claim, while Adnan?s lawyers have been unable to view the evidence on which he is detained.
A local rights group, al-Haq, said 315 Palestinians were being held under the edict.
Amnesty International has condemned his continued detention, calling on Israel to either charge or release him.
Human Rights Watch has argued that withholding reasons for arrest constitute a violation of international law.
?Israels international legal obligations, however, require it to inform those arrested of the reasons for the arrest at the time, to promptly inform them of any charges against them and to bring them before a judge,? the rights-group said in a press release.
Adnans family, his lawyer, and doctors from an Israeli rights group have warned that his health has deteriorated seriously, with a high risk of organ failure, and that Israeli authorities had shackled him to his hospital bed.
An Israeli court on Saturday decided that Khader?s final appeal will not be held until Thursday morning, despite hearing that his health is entering a critical phase.
Adnan is now in serious danger of dying before the trial, according to a doctor?s report read out in the court.
The Israeli High Court of Justice was provided with a detailed medical report from the Physicians for Human Rights on Saturday.
The report declared that Adnan, who would be in the 68th day of his fast by Thursday, ?is in immediate danger of death,? and that ?a fast in excess of 70 days does not permit survival.?
However, the judge ruled that there was no cause to move the date forward and confirmed the trial date.
The prisoners? rights group Addameer condemned the decision to delay the appeal until Thursday.
?We regret that in light of this crucial medical report, the pressure exerted by the local and international community, including the statements of High Representative of the European Union Catherine Ashton, United Nations Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process Robert Serry, and United Nations Special Rapporteur on Palestinian Human Rights Richard Falk have been met with a delay in appointing the petitions hearing by Israels High Court of Justice,? a statement from the group said.
Khader?s pregnant wife Randa described his condition on Saturday, saying he was close to death.
?His life is in danger, but praise be to God he has a strong will and very high spirits. No one believes that he is still conscious and able to speak,? she said. ?He is fading away and his eyes are sunken.?
Last week thousands of Palestinians rallied in Gaza and the West Bank in support of Adnan, who the Israelis accuse of being a member of Islamic Jihad.
The appeal at the High Court is the final opportunity for Adnan to be released.
Infamous Irish hunger striker Bobby Sands died after 66 days of refusing food in opposition to British colonial rule.
(Al-Akhbar)
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