RAMALLAH: On Sunday, Addameer Prisoner Support Network released new monthly prisoner statistics that showed an increase in the number of Palestinian children in Israeli prisons. As of February 1, at least 219 Palestinian children were detained in Israeli lockup, and 31 were under 16-years-old. This marks a 26 child increase compared to January 1, when 193 children were detained, 23 of which were under 16-years-old. In addition to children, there was a rise in the overall number of prisoners. February 1's 4,812 prisoners is a 69 person increase from January 1's 4,743. Addameer's updated statistics come the day after 30-year-old Arafat Shahin Jaradat, a prisoner from a Hebron village in the occupied West Bank, died while undergoing interrogation by Israeli secret services. According to a Facebook update by Addameer shortly after he passed, he had been interrogated for some 10 days. Palestinian sources claim he was repeatedly tortured and interrogated, while Israeli sources say he suffered a heart attack and died. Palestinian Authority Ministry of Detainees announced that it holds the Israeli government responsible for Jaradat's death and called on NGOs and the international community to intervene. In response, some 2,000 prisoners launched a mass hunger strike on Sunday. Tensions continue to soar in the West Bank as sweeping Israeli arrest campaigns, as well as clashes between soldiers and Palestinian civilians, are sharply rising in recent months. BN
