Three jailed supporters of the banned group Palestine Action have ended a hunger strike that lasted 73 days.
The three announced on 14 January that they would start eating again. They claimed that one of their key demands had been met. Elbit Systems UK had failed to win a UK Government contract. The company is part of an Israeli military technology business.
According to the campaign group Prisoners for Palestine, Elbit Systems lost out on a £2 billion contract. Under the deal, the company would have trained 60,000 British troops a year.
In a statement, the group called the hunger strike a landmark act of defiance and an embarrassment for the British state.
The UK Government designated Palestine Action as a terrorist group last July.
The hunger strikers had made three demands. They wanted bail and the lifting of the ban on Palestine Action. They also called for the UK to end support for companies that supply weapons to Israel. None of these demands has been met.
Seven prisoners took part in the protest. Four of them resumed eating during the previous month.
One of the seven, who has Type 1 diabetes, said in a statement: “We do this because of Palestine, because we’ve been inspired, because we’ve been empowered to take action and to try to realise our dreams for a free Palestine, for an emancipated world.”
Friends and family of the hunger strikers have reported a range of side effects, including significant weight loss, headaches and light-headedness. Some of the prisoners needed hospital treatment.
All the hunger strikers are on remand awaiting trial. They face charges over alleged break-ins or criminal damage in the name of Palestine Action. The alleged offences predate the ban on the group under terrorism legislation.
Each of them will have spent more than a year in custody by the time their trial takes place.
Prisons Minister Lord Timpson has said that the prisoners face charges of serious offences. He has also said that decisions on remand are for independent judges.
