Prominent Islamic Jihad leader, Adnan dies in Israeli prison

Palestinian and Israeli authorities on Tuesday reported the death of a prominent leader of the Palestinian Islamic Jihad movement (PIJ), Khader Adnan, who embarked on a hunger strike for 86 days.

The Palestinian Prisoners’ Club Association, a non-governmental organisation, said in a press statement that Adnan died in Israeli prison.

The association said the hunger strike was Adnan’s sixth attempt in Israeli prisons.

His last hunger strike began on February 5 after an Israeli army force stormed his house in Arraba, south of the northern West Bank city of Jenin and arrested him for the sixth time.

The Israeli Prison Service said in a statement that Adnan, 45, was “found unconscious in his cell in Nitzan prison.”

“A medical staff tried to resuscitate his heart before he was transferred to Assaf Harofeh Hospital, where his death was confirmed,” the statement said.

It added that “Adnan refused to undergo medical examinations nor receive treatment during his hunger strike.”