London, United Kingdom – In the final days of their months-long hunger strike, three young pro-Palestinian activists on remand – convicted of any crime – met their deaths in their prison cells.
Heba Muraisi, 31, who refused food for 73 days, was in such severe pain that it was unbearable to sit. At 49kg (108lb), her body was wasting away, her organs feared to be shutting down. She suffered memory loss and muscle aches, a sign Possible neurological damage.
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But Until they announce it With his rapidly deteriorating health ending his hunger strike on Wednesday, Muraisi and inmates Kamran Ahmed, 28, and Louis Chiaramello, 23, were determined to continue.
A Londoner who worked as a florist and lifeguard, Muraisi told Al Jazeera This week she had resigned herself to the idea of death but had to refuse food in protest because she was “finally being heard”.
Ahmed said in a statement sent to Al Jazeera that he had ended his hunger strike after 65 days that felt “bittersweet”.
Chiaramello fasted every other day for 46 days as a type 1 diabetic.
‘I was willing to go the distance’
total, eight persons They have participated in the agitation since the beginning of November. Currently, only one remand prisoner, Umar Khalid, is refusing food.
“I was willing to go the distance,” said Ahmed, who is from London and works as a mechanic. “But others weren’t ready to see me walk a mile.”
Described by loved ones as having become paper-thin, Ahmed lost 25 percent of his body weight. His heart muscle has contracted, he has chest pains and he can’t hear in one ear. His speech was slurred, and it took so much energy to walk that he was out of breath.
On Monday, when he last spoke on the phone, his sister Shahmeena Alam, a pharmacist, urged him to consider ending the strike.
“We knew it was getting to a point where it was really dangerous and the chance of death was actually very high,” she told Al Jazeera.
Alam and the doctors who consult with the group are concerned that hunger strikers may have already suffered irreversible health damage, as long-term symptoms of starvation can take years to appear. There is also fear surrounding refeeding, which can be fatal if mismanaged.
Ahmed was hospitalized again this week for the seventh time since the protests began.
Among the various jailed collectives are Kesar Zuhra; Amu Gib; Muraisi; Teuta Hoxha; Ahmad; Chiaramello; John Sink and Khalid, who have muscular dystrophy and have been on hunger strike for seven days.
All will have spent more than a year in jail before their trials later this year, beyond the standard six-month pre-trial detention limit.
Some of the group, identified as part of the “Filton 24”, are alleged to have taken part in the break-in at the UK subsidiary of Israel’s largest arms manufacturer, Elbit Systems, in Bristol. Others are accused of involvement in a break-in at a Royal Air Force (RAF) base in Oxfordshire. They denied charges of burglary and criminal damage against them.
Palestine Action, a group he is allegedly linked to, has claimed responsibility for both incidents.
Six of those charged in the Bristol operation are currently on trial.
Were the hunger strikers’ demands fulfilled?
The collective had five major protest demands, including immediate bail, a guarantee of a fair trial and the repeal of the Palestine Action.
They called for the closure of all 16 Elbit sites in the UK and an end to prison censorship, accusing authorities of intercepting mail, calls and books.
Throughout the protests, the government said that the group would face a fair trial, that it had no say over the issue of bail, as it was a matter for the judiciary and that prison welfare procedures were being followed. There is no comment on the end of the latest fast.
Elbit Systems, a target of Palestine Action’s campaign, has described its drones, which have been used extensively in Gaza to deadly effect, as the “backbone” of Israel’s drone fleet.
Palestine Action There were calls to “shut down Elbit” before it was outlawed as a “terrorist organization” in July and placed alongside ISIL (ISIS) and al-Qaeda. The group, which supports non-violent direct action and accuses the UK of complicity in Israeli atrocities, is taking the ban to the courts.
In the later stages of the hunger strike, the group added another demand – that Muraisi be returned to Bronzefield Prison, near her home, after she was moved to a prison in northern England.
Now it will, said Prisoners for Palestine, an activist-led group that supports group families, and hailed the transfer as a victory.
Palestinian prisoners have claimed several “victories” – notably the UK government’s recent decision, reported by The Times newspaper, against awarding a 2-billion-pound ($2.68 billion) military training contract to Elbit Systems UK. However, the contract will instead go to Raytheon UK, a subsidiary of the US defense company, which has many deals with the Israeli military. In October 2023, Raytheon’s CEO stated that the company would “benefit” from a war in Gaza or Israel … eventually leading to additional orders.
“We’ll never know – and I don’t think they’ll ever admit – how much the hunger strike affected (the deal decision against Elbit),” said Ahmed’s sister Alam.
“There were some victories,” she added, such as raising awareness of Elbit’s role in Israel’s genocide and the overuse of pre-trial detention in the UK.
‘Government has given some concessions’ : Kha
Supporters of the group have also claimed victory.
“The government has made some concessions,” said John McDonnell, a Labor MP, who paid tribute to the “dedication” of the hunger strikers.
Palestinian prisoners said the offer of a visit to her prison between Hoxha and the head of the JXU (Joint Extremism Unit) was considered another breakthrough. Hoxha claimed that she was being monitored by the JEXU Task Force and ordered prison officials to take away her job as a prison librarian.
The group also saw the “massive” publication of the Mail “stopped” despite winning a meeting with prison healthcare leaders “on orders from the Ministry of Justice”.
“Books on Gaza and feminism have also been given (to prisoners) after months of waiting,” the group said.
From 1981 Irish republican prisoners led by Bobby Sands led what is said to be the largest coordinated hunger strike in UK history. Sands died on the 66th day of his protest, becoming a symbol of the Irish republican cause. Nine others also died of starvation.
“Our prisoners’ hunger strike will be remembered as a momentous moment of pure defiance; an embarrassment to the British state,” said Prisoners for Palestine, which offers “direct action training” on its website.
“While these prisoners have ended their hunger strike, resistance has only just begun,” the group said, adding that 500 people had recently expressed interest in taking “direct action against the genocidal military-industrial complex”.
It further said that in pursuit of a fair trial, the hunger strikers had demanded disclosure of export licenses for the last five years from Elbit Systems. “After repeated requests, this information was disclosed by the Commerce Department to an independent researcher during the hunger strike,” hailed as another “victory”.
Alam said she imagines Ahmed may have had a few cups of tea since the fast ended. He requested soy milk, she said, because it was easier on the stomach.
“The government cannot decide whether these people live or not,” she said.
“At the end of the day, it’s their decision and that’s what they did.
“They took back control.”