Two pro-Palestinian prisoners on hunger strike in UK prisons hospitalized, life at risk

International Desk, PNN

Two remand prisoners associated with the pro-Palestinian group Palestine Action have been hospitalized while on hunger strike. Families fear that after going without food for an extended period, their lives could be in danger at any moment.

Kamran Ahmed, 28, detained at London’s Pentonville Prison, was admitted to the hospital on Saturday, according to his sister Shahmina Alam. Meanwhile, Amu Gibb, 30, detained at HMP Bronzefield in Surrey, was taken to the hospital on Friday, confirmed his friend and the organization Prisoners for Palestine. Gibb uses the pronoun “they” for themselves.

Kamran Ahmed and Amu Gibb are two of six prisoners currently on hunger strike across five different UK prisons. They face charges of vandalism and trespassing at Elbit Systems’ UK branch in Bristol and at a Royal Air Force base in Oxfordshire. They deny all allegations.

According to family statements, Kamran Ahmed is on his 42nd day of hunger strike. His organs are at serious risk of damage. In recent days, he has been losing weight rapidly, approximately half a kilogram per day. His weight has dropped to 60 kg, from 74 kg when he entered prison.

Shahmina Alam stated that during a phone call with her brother on Friday, he was confused and suffering from chest pain and high ketone levels. This is the third time Kamran Ahmed has been hospitalized since starting his hunger strike.

The hunger strikers demand immediate bail, a fair trial, the reversal of the decision to classify Palestine Action as a “terrorist organization,” and an end to alleged censorship in prison. The organization claims the UK government is indirectly complicit in Israeli actions in Gaza.

Another hunger-striking prisoner, 20-year-old Kesar Juhra, has lost 13% of his body weight after nearly 50 days without food and is also receiving hospital treatment. Other prisoners on strike include Heba Muraisi, Teuta Hoxha, and diabetic Louis Chiaramello, who is striking every other day.

Nida Jafri, a friend of Amu Gibb, said that initially the prison refused a wheelchair for Gibb despite their poor health, delaying necessary medical assessments. After hospitalization, prisoners have been unable to contact relatives, increasing concern.

Lawyers say the hunger strikers’ conditions are now “critical.” They have appealed to UK Justice Secretary David Lammy for intervention. Human rights organizations are questioning the government’s role due to the lack of response.

Analysts note that this is the UK’s largest coordinated prison hunger strike since the 1981 Irish hunger strikes, but compared to that time, British media coverage has been minimal, sparking further controversy.