The UN’s point person on human rights in occupied Palestine Tuesday urged Israel to abide by international law and international standards of detention.

In a written statement, Michael Lynk, the UN special rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Palestinian Territory under occupation, requested better and accessible health care, unrestrained family visits, and an end to solitary confinement and administrative detention for Palestinian hunger strikers.

The ongoing hunger strike staged by approximately 1,000 Palestinians in Israeli jails this week entered its second month.

“Prisoners everywhere have a right to engage in hunger strikes to protest their living conditions, and they should not be punished as a result,” said Lynk’s statement.

“I deeply regret not having the opportunity to visit the Occupied Palestinian Territory, and to speak face-to-face with victims and witnesses of Israel’s alleged violations of international humanitarian and human rights law”.

On the many Palestinian prisoners incarcerated in Israel, not in the occupied Palestinian territory, in violation of international humanitarian law, he added, “These transfers create significant barriers to the families of prisoners who wish to visit them, due to the difficulty of obtaining permits to enter Israel, and the often-arduous journey families must undertake to reach their relatives.”

According to a report by foundations including the Palestinian Prisoners Society, some 7,000 Palestinian -- including 57 women and 300 children -- are currently jailed in Israeli prisons.

PHOTO CAPTION

A Palestinian throws a rock towards an Israeli police vehicle during clashes outside Israel's Ofer military prison near the West Bank city of Ramallah February 19, 2013.

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