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Palestinian prisoner to end hunger striker, expecting imminent release

Khalil Awawdeh called it a “resounding victory” for the Palestinian people.

Khalil Awawdeh. Source: Screenshot.
Khalil Awawdeh. Source: Screenshot.

After striking a deal that would see him released in October, a Palestinian detainee imprisoned by Israel said on Wednesday that he is completing his almost six-month hunger strike.

Khalil Awawdeh, 40, acknowledged that an arrangement had been struck for his release. He called it a “resounding victory” for the Palestinian people in a video that spread widely online this week and was reportedly recorded from his hospital bed, according to the AP.

He looks sick and lean in recent photos, with his skin tightly stretched over a bony frame.

Israel accuses Awawdeh of belonging to the violent group Islamic Jihad, which he denies.

In recent years, several Palestinians have gone on long-term hunger strikes to protest their incarceration in administrative detention.

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