Demands met on 73rd day as three end strike

The following press release was issued by Prisoners for Palestine, and is being shared here in full. 

After 73 days of hunger strike which began on Balfour day, 2nd November 2025, as some prisoners are facing imminent death, Heba Muraisi, Kamran Ahmed, and Lewie have ended their hunger strikes. The decision to end their hunger strikes came as it was revealed that Elbit Systems UK was denied a vital £2 billion army training contract with the Ministry of Defence, a key demand of the hunger strikers.

The contract, which would have seen Elbit Systems provide training to the British Army over ten years, was lost despite the best efforts of officials both in the Ministry of Defence and British army, who it was revealed had been colluding with both Elbit Systems UK and its parent company Elbit Systems in backroom meetings and ‘tours’ to the capital of Palestine, Jerusalem, in a desperate attempt to further entrench their genocidal alliance and help them win the contract. 

The abrupt cancellation of this deal is a resounding victory for the hunger strikers, who resisted with their incarcerated bodies in order to shed light on the role of Elbit Systems, Israel’s largest weapons manufacturer, in the colonisation and occupation of Palestine. Since 2012, Elbit has won 25 public contracts in the UK totalling more than £333m; the loss of this £2 billion contract marks a significant shift in this sordid “strategic alliance”. With this victory it has never been clearer that Elbit’s days in Britain are numbered. 

In addition to this key demand being met, we want to take this opportunity to celebrate the various victories achieved across the duration of the hunger strike:

• In the past few weeks alone, hundreds of people have signed up to take action against the genocidal military-industrial complex, more than the amount of people who took action with Palestine Action over its 5 year campaign. During that 5 year campaign, 4 Israeli weapons factories were shut down. Elbit Systems is living on stolen time – we will see it shut down for good, not because of the government, but because of the people.
• Heba Muraisi’s transfer to HMP Bronzefield has been accepted by HMP New Hall, where she is currently held in intentional isolation from her family and friends.
• T. Hoxha has been offered a meeting with the head of JEXU (Joint Extremism Unit) at her prison, the very same organisation that orchestrates the prisoners’ treatment as ‘terrorists’.
• Despite the cruel and constant medical neglect of the hunger strikers; including not logging food refusal, refusal of ambulances in life threatening emergencies, and degrading treatment in hospital; the national heads of prison healthcare have met with us at the behest of the Ministry of Justice. 
•  During the hunger strike, some of the prisoners started receiving bulk packages of witheld mail, and in one case received an apology from prison staff for a letter that was delayed by 6 months. Books on topics of Gaza and feminism have also been given after months of waiting. 
• In pursuit of a fair trial, the hunger strikers demanded disclosure of export licenses for the last 5 years from Elbit Systems. After repeated requests, this information was disclosed to an independent researcher by the Department of Trade during the hunger strike.

The continued imprisonment of the hunger strikers will remain a stain on Britain’s facade of being a “democratic” country, with any spine of law and order. This pathetic and cowardly British government cannot resist authoritarianism; it uses fear to deter rightful protest and dissent, echoing the use of administrative detention used against the Palestinian people. 

The hunger strike has cemented this fact to the country, and across the world; Britain has political prisoners in service of a foreign genocidal regime. In a time of worsening political repression, and widespread propaganda about a non-existent ‘ceasefire’ in Gaza, the hunger strike stands as a testament of continued defiance. 

The hunger strikers have allowed those of us who were fearful of state repression to be brave – to go out once again onto the streets and fight for justice. The government should know they cannot ban a concept. Cowardly banning one group can not stop a belief, a movement, a people. This is only the start of our collective fight to free us all and the road to freedom runs through Palestine.

As these victories are declared, we turn our efforts and attention to Umer Khalid, the last remaining hunger striker, who continues to use his body as a weapon against the state in pursuit of justice.