Palestine Action-linked hunger striker Qesser Zuhrah taken to hospital | UK news
A 20-year-old woman who participated in a hunger strike by prisoners affiliated with the Palestine Movement was hospitalized after protesters gathered outside the prison where she was being held to demand urgent medical attention.
Qesser Zuhrah, awaiting trial at HMP Bronzefield in Surrey, is on the 46th day of his hunger strike.
Prisoners of Palestine, a prisoner-led collective in Britain, said it was notified that the Prison Service had refused ambulance entry to Bronzefield on Tuesday afternoon, despite Zuhrah being unable to stand and writhing in pain on the floor of her cell.
A prison spokesman said: “All prisoners have full access to healthcare, including attendance at external medical facilities if necessary.”
MP Zarah Sultana and Zuhrah’s friends and supporters gathered on Tuesday to demand that she be transferred to urgent care. Green Party member Jenny Jones later joined protesters outside the prison, warning that Zuhrah’s condition could be life-threatening.
An ambulance finally arrived Wednesday afternoon to take him to the hospital.
Palestinian prisoners said Zuhrah reported severe chest pain, shortness of breath, and abdominal and lower back pain.
It was claimed he had been receiving insufficient electrolytes since returning from hospital on Friday, with vital signs only taken intermittently and electrolytes reportedly depleted at HMP Bronzefield.
According to the letter lawyers sent to hunger strikers, the previous hospitalization occurred after Zuhrah spent a night begging for an ambulance, collapsed and lost consciousness.
He is one of two inmates, along with Amy Gardiner-Gibson, also at Bronzefield, who has refused to eat for 46 days; This coincides with the death of Martin Hurson, the sixth of 10 IRA hunger strikers to die in 1982.
Other inmates taking part include Heba Muraisi (day 44), Teuta Hoxha (day 38), Kamran Ahmed (day 37) and Lewie Chiaramello (day 12), who have diabetes.
They are all being detained for their alleged participation in the Palestine Action protests and will have spent more than a year in prison. The pre-trial detention limit is six months – before trial. Their demands include immediate bail, an end to the ban on the Palestine Movement, and an end to communication restrictions.
On Wednesday, former Labor leader Jeremy Corbyn quizzed Keir Starmer on whether the prime minister would meet representatives of hunger strikers. Starmer rejected the offer, echoing the response given by justice secretary Jake Richards when Corbyn asked him the same question 24 hours earlier.
A spokesman for HMP Bronzefield said they could not provide information about specific people but added: “Any prisoner who refuses to eat receives regular medical assessment and support from clinicians, with mental health support also offered.”
The spokesman said prisoners were managed in accordance with UK prison policies and procedures, including assessment of individual risks and the security situation, and that they could make specific complaints directly to the prison.
The Central and North West London NHS trust, which is responsible for the provision of healthcare services within the prison, referred the Guardian to the Ministry of Justice.
A Ministry of Justice spokesman said: “The welfare of prisoners is assessed on an ongoing basis and appropriate measures are taken, including hospital treatment where necessary.
“Her Majesty’s Prison and Probation Service (HMPPS) has reassured ministers that all cases where prisoners are denied food will be managed with appropriate medical assessment and support in accordance with relevant policy and consistent with prisoners’ rights.”
