The Hunger Strikers of Palestine & Bahrain

Shortly after Khader Adnan's heroic hunger strike, there were others to take up the same struggle as him.

Of those is a Palestinian lady, Hana Shalabi. She was part of the Israeli-Hamas prisoner swap that occurred last year, only to be kidnapped again by Israeli Occupation Forces on 16th February this year from the West Bank. Like other Palestinian detainees, she is held in solitary confinement and has not been told of the charge she has been arrested for. Like Khader Adnan, she is now on hunger strike, in protest to her re-arrest and the conditions she is held under.

Israel has been given a hard time by human rights organisations over Khader Adnan's case and in doing so, the issue of the hundreds of Palestinian detainees in confinement has raised itself out into the public sphere again. Israel's attempt to soften the issue and reduce the sentencing of Hana Shalabi by two months, isn't likely to detract the Palestinian from her hunger strike. Afterall, she is protesting her unfounded imprisonment.

She isn't the only one however. In Bahrain, the human rights activist, Abdulhadi Al Khawaja has also undergone a hunger strike in protest for being detained by the Bahraini dictatorship. Pro-democracy activists are rallying behind him and championing him as the hero that he is.

Peaceful resistance to the Israeli apartheid should always be championed and history has taught us, that our states only support and get behind those who embark upon the road of resistence, when we, en mass, support them. Isn't it about time we increased our support?

Twitter played a massive and pivotal role in helping Khader Adnan. @KhaderAdnan is supporting Hana Shalabi and @KhawajaStrike is supporting Abdulhadi Al Khawaja. We are supporting both causes @MPACUK. Follow us.