"Israel" Pressures Issawi, Erekat: "Israel" Responsible for His Fate

Local Editor

Intensive efforts are being made by "Israel" to convince hunger-striking prisoner Samer Issawi to end his protest action, a lawyer said Tuesday.

"Israeli" negotiators have been visiting Issawi at Kaplan Medical Center since Friday and pressuring him to accept proposals to end his hunger strike, Palestinian Prisoner Society lawyer Jawad Boulos revealed after visiting Issawi on Tuesday.
"Doctors said that the prisoner's heart is very weak," Boulous added.

Issawi has been on hunger strike for over 265 days and has so far refused all offers by "Israel" to be exiled, insisting on being released to his home in al-Quds.
""Israel" tried to make him agree to be deported to a number of countries, including Egypt, Jordan, Turkey, Finland and Switzerland," Boulous added.

Meanwhile, Palestinian Liberation Organization negotiator Saeb Erekat warned that any harm to Samer Issawi will lead to an eruption of violence that will hinder political progress.

In a letter to EU chief Catherine Ashton, Erekat wrote that Issawi's life "hangs in the balance" after nearly nine months on hunger strike in "Israeli" detention.
"The fate of Issawi is being followed very closely by millions of Palestinians, Arabs and supporters of justice worldwide. The situation is potentially explosive and any harm that comes to him will undoubtedly lead to a serious eruption in violence that will make any sort of political progress unlikely," Erekat warned.

Erekat said the PLO holds "Israel" "fully accountable" for Issawi's critical condition, but that should Issawi die, the PLO would also hold the international community partly responsible for tolerating "Israel's" actions.

"Since "Israel's" annexation of East al-Quds is illegal and not recognized by the international community, including the European Union, the term in question effectively denied him the right to move a few kilometers from one part of his country to another part of it. Such is the absurdity and injustice of "Israel's" obsession with controlling Palestinian lives," Erekat wrote.

The EU has committed to upgrade its relations to "Israel" if certain conditions are met.

Source: News Agencies, Edited by moqawama.org