UK hunger strike passes 60 days with Palestine activists suffering severe health complications

A Palestinian activist on remand in a UK prison is suffering worsening medical complications, including muscle spasms and difficulty breathing, as her hunger strike passes the 60-day mark.

Prisoners for Palestine (P4P) said that Heba Muraisi - on remand for more than a year over Palestine-related activism - has now reached 64 days without food, making her the longest-serving hunger striker amongst the group.

Muraisi began her strike on 3 November 2025 after she was transferred without notice from HMP Bronzefield to HMP New Hall, hundreds of miles away from her family and support network.

Muraisi told P4P that she has been “experiencing muscle spasms and twitches in her arm” and at times feels “like she is holding her breath and doesn’t know why, like she has to remind herself to breathe”.

P4P says these symptoms could indicate emerging neurological damage.

Muraisi has vowed not to end her hunger strike unless she is returned to HMP Bronzefield and granted immediate bail - demands she says reflect the strain of prolonged remand custody that, campaigners argue, has already exceeded standard UK limits.

Her mother, Dunya, who has been unable to visit her daughter, expressed support in a letter shared by P4P:

“We are here behind you, supporting you and loving you without limits,” said Dunya. “No matter how long the night of waiting lasts, the sun of freedom will surely rise.”

‘Grave danger looms’

Muraisi is one of eight activists linked to Palestine Action who have been on hunger strike to protest the goverment's decision to hold them on remand and proscribe the direct action group.  

Four of the activists have paused their hunger strike and said they would resume their protest in the new year. 

Last week, another hunger striker, Kamran Ahmed, was hospitalised for the fifth time since beginning his hunger strike.

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His family told Middle East Eye that Ahmed said he was kept double-cuffed throughout his hospital stay, leaving his wrists swollen, while healthcare staff struggled to insert cannulas because his veins had shrunk.

Ahmed has now reached 58 days on hunger strike and has reported intermittent hearing loss - a sign that irreversible damage could be imminent, medical experts cited by campaigners warned.

P4P says it has repeatedly raised concerns about the restraints used during Ahmed’s hospital admissions and the wider lack of medical accommodation for the strikers.

The British government has so far refused to meet the hunger strikers or their representatives despite the escalating health risks, the group said, warning that organ failure, paralysis, brain damage and sudden death are becoming “increasingly more likely”.

“As the hunger strike enters its third month, those still on hunger strike continue to deteriorate, and grave danger looms over them,” said P4P spokesperson Francesca Nadin.

“Despite this, they remain firm in their actions and beliefs, that continuing to strike is the only way to get justice in the face of the government’s contempt for life.”

Hunger strike paused

Meanwhile, a third prisoner, Teuta Hoxha, has temporarily paused her hunger strike after authorities handed over a backlog of letters dating back six months, provided a book alongside an apology for the delay, and confirmed a meeting with the Joint Extremism Unit (JEXU) to discuss her conditions.

However, campaigners say the prison has since refused to send her to the hospital, despite doctors' warning that she cannot safely manage feeding herself without risk of refeeding syndrome, a potentially life-threatening complication.

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P4P argues that the treatment of all three prisoners reflects a wider pattern of punitive transfers, prolonged remand, and inadequate medical protection faced by detainees linked to Palestine solidarity activism.

The Ministry of Justice and the prison service have been approached for comment.

Last month, seven UN human rights experts also warned the UK government that the eight pro-Palestine activists on hunger strike risk organ failure and death.

The seven experts who work independently of each other said the activist's decision to refuse food reflected a “measure of last resort” taken by people who believe “their right to protest and effect remedy has been exhausted”.

The lawyers are now launching legal action against the UK government for refusing to meet with them.

The eight detainees are being held on remand in five prisons over their alleged involvement in break-ins at factories owned by Israeli arms company Elbit Systems and a Royal Air Force base in Oxfordshire.

They deny the charges.