Freedom and appropriate medical treatment for the sick prisoner, Nasser Abu Hamid

Written by: Attorney Ali Abu Hilal *
The prisoner Nasser Abu Hamid deserves life, freedom and human dignity after spending about 30 years in the occupation prisons. He has been suffering from cancer for a long time, and the prisoners' organizations warn of his death at any moment. ‏
The occupation authorities practice a policy of medical negligence against him, and he has not received any treatment for two months, because his body is no longer strong or responding to these treatments. Examining the possibility of allowing him to leave prison to spend his last days with his family
It is noteworthy that his health condition began to deteriorate clearly since August 2021, when he began to suffer from pain in his chest until it became clear that he had a tumor on the lung, and it was removed and about 10 cm from the circumference of the tumor, to be transferred back to "Ashkelon" prison. Before his recovery, what brought him to this dangerous stage, and later, after the doctors recognized the need to take chemotherapy, he was again subjected to deliberate procrastination in providing him with the necessary treatment, until he recently started receiving it.
The prisoner Abu Hamid, from Al-Amari camp / Ramallah, has been detained since 2002, and has been sentenced to life imprisonment seven times and (50) years. He was subjected to the first arrest before the uprising of stones in 1987 and spent four months, then he was rearrested again and sentenced to two and a half years in prison, and he was released to be rearrested for the third time in 1990, and the occupation sentenced him to life imprisonment, he spent four years of his sentence when he was released with other releases which took place within the framework of the negotiations, until the occupation re-arrested him in 1996 and he spent three years. During the Al-Aqsa Intifada in 2000, Abu Hamid became involved in resisting the occupation again, and was arrested in 2002, and the occupation sentenced him to life imprisonment seven times and (50 ), and he is still in captivity to this day
The prisoner Abu Hamid is from a struggling family, and he is among five brothers facing life imprisonment in the occupation prisons. Four of them were arrested in 2002: Nasr, Nasser, Sharif, and Muhammad, in addition to their brother Islam, who was arrested in 2018, and they have a sixth brother who was martyred. He is Abdel Moneim Abu Hamid, and the rest of the family was arrested, and their mother was prevented from visiting them for years, and they lost their father during the years of their detention, and the family house was demolished five times, the last of which was in 2019.
The prisoner Abu Hamid faces difficult health conditions as a result of the injuries he suffered, and during the past year his condition worsened significantly, specifically in August, and it was found that he had a tumor in the lung. During the period that preceded the onset of the disease, the prisoner Abu Hamid faced The policy of deliberate medical negligence and procrastination in providing treatment, in addition to the harsh prison conditions, specifically in "Ashkelon", which is considered one of the worst prisons in terms of conditions, and yet it holds a group of sick prisoners.
The occupation authorities have practiced slow killing against the prisoner Nasser Abu Hamid, as they have practiced by cutting hundreds of sick prisoners over the past decades. This policy has led to the death of 73 prisoners in the occupation prisons since 1967, the last of whom was the prisoner Musa Abu Mahamid in early September. current.
The prisoner Nasser Abu Hamid is dying these days, and he may die at any moment, according to medical reports. The occupation authorities do not pay attention to his life, which is getting more dangerous every moment, and they bear responsibility for his slow and deliberate killing as a result of the policy of medical negligence that they have practiced against him for some time. Long, and you should be held accountable for this crime so that the perpetrators do not escape punishment
All efforts should be combined, and the national and popular movements condemning the practices of the occupation against him, inside the homeland, and in the countries of exile and diaspora, should be combined, and all international solidarity movements and supporters of the Palestinian people in all countries of the world should move and continue to put pressure on their countries, to put pressure on the occupation government. In order to stop the policy of medical negligence and slow killing practiced against prisoners and detainees in occupation prisons, in violation of international humanitarian law and human rights law.
All international human rights institutions and bodies must shoulder their legal and humanitarian responsibilities, according to international humanitarian law and human rights law, to put pressure on the occupation government, in order to liberate him and release him immediately, so that he can obtain appropriate medical treatment outside the prison, so that medical treatment may be provided. And the right thing for him, and saving his life before it is too late, the captive Abu Hamid deserves freedom and human dignity, and he deserves life in his last days among his family and in the arms of his patient and struggling mother. ‏
* Lawyer and university lecturer in international law