Hunger strike by Palestinians to protest conditions in Israeli jails cancelled

Demands made by prisoners after tensions were running high following escape of six inmates

Arab Israeli protesters lift Palestinian flags and placards showing six prisoners who escaped from Israel's Gilboa prison. AFP

Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails have called off a planned hunger strike later this week involving some 1,400 inmates after their demands were met, the Palestinian Prisoners' Club said on Wednesday.

Tensions have been running high since six militants staged a dramatic escape from a high-security jail in northern Israel on September 6, via a tunnel dug under a sink.

Four of them have since been recaptured.

Hundreds of their fellow inmates were transferred to other jails, and personal items were confiscated, according to the Palestinian Prisoners' Club. Angry prisoners had started fires in several jails.

The Palestinian Authority's commission for prisoners had announced plans for a hunger strike from Friday.

Some 1,380 prisoners -- out of more than 4,000 Palestinians held in Israeli jails -- were to start fasting on Friday, to be joined by other inmates next week.

“The situation is very bad in the prisons,” Qadri Abu Bakr, head of the Palestinian Authority's commission for prisoners, told the AFP on Tuesday. "That's why they're going on hunger strike."

On Wednesday, however, the Prisoners' Club said it had been decided to "suspend the collective hunger strike after the demands were met" including a "cessation of the collective punishments".

An Israel Prison Service spokesman said that as of Wednesday there was no indication that a hunger strike was set to begin, but refused to comment on the claim that prisoners' demands had been met.

The Red Cross said Israel had decided to allow prisoner visits that were suspended last week.

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  Six Palestinians have escaped from Gilboa prison in northern Israel. Getty

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  The prisoners, who include former Al Aqsa Martyrs Brigades leader Zakaria Zubeidi, are believed to have escaped at night through a tunnel. Getty

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  Prison authorities have started a manhunt in northern Israel and the occupied West Bank. Getty

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  The Israel Prison Service has said an alert was sounded at about 3am after 'suspicious figures' were seen outside the prison. Reuters

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  Israel’s Army Radio has said the men appeared to have received help from outside. Reuters

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  About 400 people are detained at the prison over 'security offences' and all are to be relocated as a result of the escape, the prison service says. Reuters

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  The narrow escape tunnel started beneath a sink and continued deep underground. Reuters

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  Gilboa is considered to be one of the most secure prisons in Israel. Reuters

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  Four of the men who escaped were serving life sentences, the Palestinian Prisoners Club says. Getty

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  Authorities believe the men may try to reach the occupied West Bank, which is about four kilometres from the prison, or the border with Jordan, which is 14km away. Getty

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  The Israeli military are among the agencies involved in the search operation. Getty

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  Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett has called the escape a 'grave incident' that requires maximum effort from the country's various security branches. Getty

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  The prisoners have escaped on the eve of the Jewish New Year. Getty

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  A spokesman for Hamas has described the escape as a 'victory for the will and determination of our heroic prisoners'. Getty

But Mr Abu Bakr also expressed his concern over the fate of the four escapees now recaptured, who the Red Cross has not been allowed to visit.

Palestinian lawyer Khaled Mahjana told AFP he would meet two of the four – Yaqub Qadri and Mohammad Ardah – on Tuesday evening.

Mr Abu Bakr also expressed fears for the health of another recaptured fugitive, Zakaria Zubeidi, following social media reports he had been sent to hospital.

Prison authorities said Monday he was still in custody and had not been hospitalised.