RAMALLAH, April 25 (Xinhua) -- Palestine on Saturday urged Israel to release a Palestinian prisoner diagnosed with COVID-19, three days after he was arrested by Israeli forces in the West Bank.
Saeb Erekat, secretary-general of the Palestine Liberation Organization, accused Israel of violating the international law by continuing the detention of the 21-year-old, demanding his immediate release.
"Mohamed Hasan is a student from Birzeit University held by the Israeli occupier at a detention center in Jerusalem. He has been diagnosed with COVID-19," Erekat said in a press statement.
He called on the international community and the UN secretary-general to "oblige Israel to release him immediately in order to follow up on his medical condition," according to the statement.
According to Hasan's lawyers, his interrogation was extended for eight more days despite his diagnosis.
Palestinian officials warned that the situation of Hasan may put hundreds of other Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails at risk of contracting the virus.