A woman awaiting trial for her alleged involvement in a Palestine Action protest has been taken to hospital after 53 days on hunger strike in prison, with supporters warning her life is at risk.
Health Crisis in Custody
Heba Muraisi, 31, from Barnet, north London, was hospitalised this week after her refusal of food passed the 50-day mark. She is the longest-running participant from an initial group of eight who began the protest while on remand at HMP New Hall in West Yorkshire.
According to the support group Prisoners for Palestine, a doctor ordered her hospital transfer on Tuesday due to concerns over her low white blood cell count. Muraisi is reportedly suffering from fatigue, lightheadedness, nausea, achiness, and chest pain.
The group also stated she had been moved to a noisier prison wing against her will, with threats of force used to compel her.
The Filton 24 and Their Demands
Muraisi is one of the 'Filton 24', a group charged in connection with a break-in at a research and development facility owned by Elbit Systems, a UK subsidiary of an Israeli defence firm, in Filton near Bristol in August 2024.
She was arrested in a dawn raid on November 19, 2024, and has been in custody for 349 days. The hunger strikers' demands include:
- An end to censorship of their communication in jail.
- Immediate bail.
- A guarantee of a fair trial.
- The de-proscribing of Palestine Action.
- The shutdown of Elbit's UK operations.
Four defendants continue the strike, which is considered the largest collective hunger strike in a UK prison since 1981, when ten people, including IRA member Bobby Sands, died.
Government and Official Response
The law firm representing the hunger strikers has written to the government, warning that 'the risk of their dying increases every day' as their health declines.
However, Lord Timpson, the minister for prisons, stated the government would not meet the group. He emphasised that hunger strikes were not new, with over 200 occurring on average each year, and that established procedures were in place to ensure prisoner safety.
'Ministers will not meet with them,' he said. 'We have a justice system based on the separation of powers... It would be entirely unconstitutional and inappropriate for ministers to intervene in ongoing legal cases.'
Practice Plus Group, which manages healthcare at New Hall, said it provides 'compassionate care' and manages food refusal according to relevant policies alongside the prison and NHS.
The other continuing strikers are named as Teuta Hoxha, Kamran Ahmed, and Lewie Chiaramello. Ahmed's sister has claimed he has been 'double handcuffed' and subjected to degrading treatment.
In a statement, Muraisi said: 'I want to make it abundantly clear that this is not about dying, because unlike the enemy I love life, and my love for life, for people, is the reason why I have been incarcerated.'
