Palestinian Detainee Arafat Jaradat To Be Buried
The funeral of a Palestinian who died in Israeli custody on Saturday, fuelling riots, is due to take place in the West Bank city of Hebron.
Palestinians say Arafat Jaradat, 30, died from torture, while Israel says a post-mortem was inconclusive and that investigations into his death continue.
There were clashes across the West Bank on Sunday, while prisoners refused food in protest at Mr Jaradat’s death.
It follows days of violence amid protest over Palestinian detainees.
Mr Jaradat, from the West Bank village of Saeer, was arrested last week for throwing a rock which injured an Israeli citizen, Israel’s internal security agency Shin Bet said.
The father-of-two died six days later at Meggido prison, from what the Israel Prison Service (IPS) said appeared to be a heart attack.
Palestinian officials, however, said an autopsy, carried out by Israeli morticians, showed he had suffered two broken ribs and had bruising.
“[Arafat Jaradat] faced harsh torture, leading to his immediate, direct death. Israel is fully responsible for his killing,” Palestinian minister of prisoner affairs Issa Karake said.
Israel’s health ministry said the injuries were likely the result of attempts to resuscitate Mr Jaradat, and that the cause of his death had not been determined by the post-mortem.
‘Unequivocal demand’
Almost all 4,500 Palestinian prisoners held in Israeli jails refused food on Sunday in protest at Mr Jaradat’s death, an IPS spokeswoman told AFP news agency.
The issue of Palestinian prisoners has been prominent for days, with clashes in the West Bank and East Jerusalem last week amid protests over the the continued detention of four hunger strikers.
The clashes continued on Sunday, fuelled by news of Mr Jaradat’s death.
Stone-throwing protesters in the West Bank towns of Hebron, Ramallah, Nablus, Jenin and elsewhere faced off with Israeli soldiers deploying tear gas and stun grenades.
One Palestinian man was said to have been seriously wounded after being hit with live rounds.
In Gaza City, women gathered with flags and posters to protest at the conditions of Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails.
Earlier, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu made “an unequivocal demand” to the Palestinian Authority to calm the surge of protests, a statement from his office said.
But Yasser Abed Rabbo, a senior aide to Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, said Israel’s treatment of prisoners and violence by Jewish settlers were to blame for the upsurge in anger.
