Palestinian who died in Israeli jail is buried, other prisoners are still suffering medical neglect

Jamal Hasan al-Sarahin, 37, a Palestinian prisoner who has died in an Israeli jail due to medical negligence

January 19, 2007

Al-Khalil – Humdreds of Palestinians, on Thursday, took part in the funeral of 38-year-old Jamal al-Sarahin at his home town of Beit Ula, west of the southern West Bank city of al-Khalil. Sarahin died at an Israeli prison last Tuesday as a result of medical neglect.

The corpse of Sarahin was transported by an Israeli ambulance to the Tarqomia roadblock where it was received by tens of his town's people who carried it to the deceased's home for a final farewell before taken to be buried.

Sarahin's death brought to 14 the number of Palestinians who died in Israeli jails since the start of the Aqsa intifada in September 2000.

Meanwhile, the family of another prisoner called on local and international human rights organizations to pressure the Israeli prisons authority to facilitate medical treatment of their son.

The mother of Rabi' Harb told PIC that her son suffered gunshot wounds to his back and abdomen as well as shrapnel lodged into his kidney and despite the fact that he was paralyzed in the lower part of his body the Israeli prisons authority is not allowing him access to proper medical treatment and his life is in danger.

There are currently around 11,000 Palestinian captives in Israeli jails, about a 1000 of them suffer various ailments and are victims of intentional medical neglect by the Israeli prisons authority.

Relatives of Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails attend the weekly demonstration at the Red Cross headquarters in Gaza City, 13 November 2006. (MaanImages/Hatem Omar)