The Palestinian captive journalist Mohammed al-Qiq, who has been on hunger strike in Israeli jails for 6 days, affirmed on Monday that the prisoners are steadfast in their position despite the hunger and the pain they suffer in order to extract their legitimate rights from the Israel Prison Service (IPS).

In a leaked letter which the prisoners’ information office received on Monday, Qiq called on the Palestinian people to intensify their support for the hunger strikers and asked the university students in the West Bank in particular to lead the solidarity movement.

Qiq said in his letter that Israel “will never be able to break the will of the strikers”, pointing out that the prisoners’ demands are just and legitimate and that they will not stand silent vis-à-vis the IPS crimes against them.

He stressed that the prisoners are united in their demands and that the next stage will witness an escalation in the number of the striking prisoners as long as the IPS continues to ignore their demands.

As for his health condition, Qiq pointed out that he lost about 6 kg after going on a hunger strike for the third time in one year and two months. However, he stated that his morale is high and that he is insistent, like all other strikers, to continue the strike whatever the consequences are.

Qiq added that the IPS imposed fines on the striking prisoners, denied them family visits and prevented them from going to the canteen for two months in response to their hunger strike, but he emphasized that these sanctions will not deter them from going on with the strike.