After a protracted hunger strike, a Palestinian militant dies in Israel

Khader Adnan, a leader in the Islamic Jihad militant group in the West Bank, died in Israeli custody on Tuesday after 86 days of hunger strike in protest against his detention without charge. His death raises the potential for renewed violence between Israel and Palestinian militant groups as violence surges in the West Bank. Palestinian Prime Minister Mohammad Shtayyeh accused Israel of deliberately assassinating Adnan by rejecting his request for his release, neglecting him medically, and keeping him in his cell despite the seriousness of his health condition. Palestinian groups called for a general strike in the Gaza Strip, Jerusalem and in cities across the West Bank on Tuesday, with schools and business closing for what organizers called a day of “general mourning.” The Israeli military said the missiles fired from Gaza Strip fell in open territory, causing no damage. In his final message, Adnan said he was "sending you these words as my flesh and fat has melted" and prayed that God accept him as a faithful martyr.

Physicians for Human Rights Israel visited Adnan in prison earlier this week and warned him of imminent death. Israeli authorities had refused to move Adnan to a hospital, according to the rights group and his wife. Palestinian prisoners are seen as national heroes and have gone on lengthy hunger strikes to protest their detentions and seek concessions from Israel. Adnan was found unconscious in his cell early Tuesday and transferred to a hospital where he was pronounced dead. Israel is currently holding over 1,000 Palestinian detainees without charge or trial, the highest number since 2003.

Palestinians and rights groups say the system is widely abused and denies due process, with the secret nature of the evidence making it impossible for administrative detainees or their lawyers to mount a defense. In 1992, some 7,000 prisoners participated in a hunger strike that lasted for 19 days, during which the prisoner Hussein Obeidat died.