The hunger strike that nearly 1,200 Palestinian prisoners in Israel have begun is bound to ratchet up tension between Israelis and Palestinians in the coming days. Already there have been clashes in the West Bank, a situation being watched closely by the UN. On Monday, thousands of Palestinians in the West Bank participated in solidarity rallies marking Palestinian Prisoners Day, fueling tension across Palestinian areas. If complications occur and the strike lasts for an extended time, it is liable to take over the headlines at a time when US President Donald Trump's administration is declaring its intention to try to reach a permanent settlement. This hunger strike is reportedly the largest that Palestinian prisoners have ever launched. Their long list of demands includes an end to solitary confinement and administrative detention - which allows suspects to be held without charge for six-month intervals - better medical care and extended visits with family, access to telephones, renewal of academic studies, and more television channels. The hunger strike is basically the initiative of a single person, Marwan Barghouti, the high-profile prisoner whom many Palestinians see as a potential future leader of the Palestinian Authority despite his prison sentence. Barghouti had written an op-ed published in the New York Times on Monday, where he described the daily struggle of Palestinian political prisoners in Israeli prisons and the ambition behind the hunger strike. Barghouti is to be prosecuted in a discipline court as punishment for writing the oped and has been placed in solitary confinement. Israel does not recognize Palestinian prisoners as having the status of prisoners of war. The prisoners are instead treated as politically motivated criminals or terrorists, and either charged with terrorist offences or violent crimes, or administratively detained without charge. The distinction is huge. According to the Geneva Conventions, Palestinians who are part of the resistance, even if armed, should be entitled to prisoner of war status and not called terrorists. Hunger strikes continue to be one of the most prominent tools of struggle and confrontation of the occupation. At the end of last year, the number of Palestinian prisoners had reached approximately 7,000, including around 300 minors and 53 women. That over 1,000 are on hunger strike is a remarkable number that should worry Israel. Israel's declared intention is not to conduct any negotiations with the prisoners and not to accede to any demand, which has the support of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Avigdor Lieberman. In the past, such determination wilted as the strikes grew longer and things became complicated. It is possible that in the current political climate, this is a crisis that will necessitate close management by top government officials and the defense establishment for fear of repercussions outside prison walls. Israeli prison officials are taking no chances. They have asked for the creation of a military hospital to ensure that hunger-striking Palestinian prisoners are not transferred to civilian hospitals, which have so far refused to force feed hunger-striking Palestinian prisoners. Force-feeding can save a Palestinian's life. His death would cause an immediate Palestinian uproar and international condemnation that Israel can ill afford. Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas is slated to visit the White House next month. The longer the strike lasts, the more likely it is that there will be complications: hospitalization of hunger strikers, dilemmas concerning force-feeding and the danger of prisoners dying could inflame passions in the Palestinian territories.
