Palestinians stop work in solidarity with hunger-striking prisoners
Palestinians were on Monday observing a general strike in solidarity with prisoners refusing food in Israeli jails for more than a month over their conditions.
The strike paralysed east Jerusalem as well as West Bank cities and suburbs, with shops closed and both public and private sector employees refusing to work, AFP correspondents said.
The industrial action came in response to a call from the Palestinian striking prisoners' support committee, a grassroots group.
The committee appealed for protests against Israeli military forces in the occupied West Bank in support of the prisoners, who are behind bars for security offences against Israel and its citizens.
It coincided with the arrival of US President Donald Trump in Israel ahead of a meeting with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas on Tuesday.
Palestinian police forces were deployed at contact points in the city of Al-Bireh close to the Beit El settlements, an AFP correspondent said.
Israel announced a series of measures to support the Palestinian economy and ease transportation woes ahead of Trump's visit, which were welcomed by the US administration as "encouraging".
Monday's strike was held in solidarity with more than 1,000 Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails who have been fasting since April 17 over demands for improved conditions.
A spokesman for the Israeli Prisons Service said 10 fasting Palestinians were evacuated for medical treatment on Sunday, with two remaining hospitalised. According to the spokesman, 850 Palestinian security prisoners were currently on hunger strike.
Palestinian officials say some 1,500 prisoners are participating in the hunger strike that began on 17 April, with detainees ingesting only water and salt.
Israeli authorities have put the number at around 1,200.
Some 6,500 Palestinians are currently imprisoned by Israel for a range of offences and alleged crimes.
Around 500 are being held under Israel's system of administrative detention, which allows for imprisonment without charge.
Palestinian prisoners have mounted repeated hunger strikes, but rarely on such a scale.
The hunger strike is being led by Palestinian leader and prominent prisoner Marwan Barghouti, serving five life sentences over his role in the second Palestinian intifada, or uprising, of 2000 to 2005.
The prisoners have issued demands ranging from better medical care to phone access.
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