Palestine Action Hunger Strikers Enter Critical Phase as Activist Pledges to Continue Protest
Several pro-Palestine prisoners in UK remand hunger strike for weeks amid deteriorating health and growing pressure on government
An activist affiliated with Palestine Action has vowed to continue her hunger strike in a UK prison as fellow protesters enter a potentially life-threatening stage of their protest against pre-trial detention and associated conditions.
Teuta Hoxha, held at HMP Peterborough and more than forty days into her fast, described the physical toll of prolonged starvation in poignant terms as she and other hunger strikers seek urgent changes to their legal situation and prison treatment.
Medical experts, family members and supporters warn that the protesters risk severe health consequences, including organ failure and irreversible damage, as their bodies struggle without sustenance.
Hoxha is one of eight activists remanded in custody in connection with alleged offences linked to protests at a defence-industry site in Filton, southwest England, and remaining on remand far beyond typical pre-trial custody limits.
Several hunger strikers have already been hospitalised multiple times as their physical condition declines, with symptoms including dizziness, shortness of breath and risk of cardiac and neurological harm.
Despite repeated calls from relatives and legal representatives for the UK Justice Secretary to intervene on humanitarian grounds, officials have maintained that prison medical teams are managing care and have not acceded to demands for meetings or concessions.
The protesters’ demands include immediate bail, the reversal of the proscription of Palestine Action and relief from restrictive conditions that supporters argue harm their rights and impede fair treatment.
Supporters, including members of Parliament and solidarity organisations, have rallied outside prisons and raised the alarm about the dwindling health of the hunger strikers, calling on authorities to facilitate hospital monitoring and consider bail on humanitarian grounds.
Lawyers for the detainees highlighted that two hunger strikers have already temporarily ended their strike due to critical health, while others, including Hoxha and Qesser Zuhrah — who was hospitalised after more than forty-six days without food — persist.
Families are preparing for potential tragedy, warning that absent government engagement the situation could escalate into a national scandal.
The episode underscores broader tensions over protest, incarceration and political expression in the context of legal proceedings that could run for months before trial.
Teuta Hoxha, held at HMP Peterborough and more than forty days into her fast, described the physical toll of prolonged starvation in poignant terms as she and other hunger strikers seek urgent changes to their legal situation and prison treatment.
Medical experts, family members and supporters warn that the protesters risk severe health consequences, including organ failure and irreversible damage, as their bodies struggle without sustenance.
Hoxha is one of eight activists remanded in custody in connection with alleged offences linked to protests at a defence-industry site in Filton, southwest England, and remaining on remand far beyond typical pre-trial custody limits.
Several hunger strikers have already been hospitalised multiple times as their physical condition declines, with symptoms including dizziness, shortness of breath and risk of cardiac and neurological harm.
Despite repeated calls from relatives and legal representatives for the UK Justice Secretary to intervene on humanitarian grounds, officials have maintained that prison medical teams are managing care and have not acceded to demands for meetings or concessions.
The protesters’ demands include immediate bail, the reversal of the proscription of Palestine Action and relief from restrictive conditions that supporters argue harm their rights and impede fair treatment.
Supporters, including members of Parliament and solidarity organisations, have rallied outside prisons and raised the alarm about the dwindling health of the hunger strikers, calling on authorities to facilitate hospital monitoring and consider bail on humanitarian grounds.
Lawyers for the detainees highlighted that two hunger strikers have already temporarily ended their strike due to critical health, while others, including Hoxha and Qesser Zuhrah — who was hospitalised after more than forty-six days without food — persist.
Families are preparing for potential tragedy, warning that absent government engagement the situation could escalate into a national scandal.
The episode underscores broader tensions over protest, incarceration and political expression in the context of legal proceedings that could run for months before trial.
