Jailed Palestinians in Israel stage hunger strike

JERUSALEM

Palestinian detainees in Israeli prisons staged a hunger strike on Sunday in protest of restrictions by prison authorities.

Palestinian inmates from Hamas group refused the morning meals, according to Israeli Channel 13.

The Palestinian Prisoner Society confirmed the hunger strike.

"More prisoners will take part in the strike depending on the response of the prison authorities," it said in a statement.

Sunday's hunger strike comes after Israel has placed cellphone signal jamming devices amid a campaign to find mobile phones smuggled into prisons.

Palestinian inmates for their parts say the jammers are harmful to their health.

According to the Ramallah-based Palestinian Authority's Committee for Prisoners' Affairs, the total number of Palestinians currently imprisoned by Israel stands at 5,700, including 48 women and 250 children.

* Writing by Mahmoud Barakat