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Palestinian prisoner ends hunger strike as Israel promises release

Palestinian prisoner Hisham Abu Hawash has agreed to end his 141-day hunger strike with the news that Israel will finally release him from administrative detention next month.
MOHAMMED ABED/AFP via Getty Images

Palestinian prisoner Hisham Abu Hawash agreed Jan. 4 to end his 141-day hunger strike after Israeli authorities agreed not to renew his detention. He is expected to be released on Feb. 26, but the Israeli authorities have not confirmed the date.

Abu Hawash, a 40-year-old resident of the West Bank village of Dura, near Hebron, has been held in Israel under an administrative detention order since October 2020. According to the Shin Bet, he is member of the terror group Islamic Jihad, but he has never been charged. Upon his arrest, the Shin Bet presented confidential documents to justify his detention. The legal measure allows Israeli authorities to arrest people deemed to pose an imminent security threat and hold them without charges or setting a trial date.

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