Eight Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails continued their hunger strikes on Friday in protest of their administrative detention, a report by the PA’s Committee for Prisoners’ Affairs said.

The report said that Ghassan Zawahra, who has been on strike since Aug. 20, had escalated his protest and stopped drinking water.

Zawahra is being held in solitary confinement at Eshel prison.

The controversial policy of administrative detention, or internment without charge or trial, has been highly criticized by international bodies.

The other strikers protesting their detainment without trial were identified as Shadi Maali, Nidal Abu Aker, who are in solitary confinement at Ela and Ashkelon prisons, respectively, in addition to Thabit Nasir, Badr al-Ruzza, Munir Abu Sharrar, Salman Skafi and Bilal al-Saifi who are being held at Negev prison.

There are currently 400 Palestinians being held in Israeli jails under administrative detention, according to documentation by prisoners’ rights group Addameer.

According to the Association for Civil Rights in Israel, the majority of prisoners who go on hunger strike are Palestinians in administrative detention, under which they are held for renewable six-month periods.

Palestinian detainees in the Nafha and Ramon jails last month declared a “campaign of disobedience” in response to sanctions imposed on hunger strikers, as well as other restrictions.

On Aug. 20 Israel agreed to suspend the administrative detention of Palestinian prisoner Muhammad Allan following his 66-day hunger strike that brought him close to death.

(Ma’an)