Haniyeh calls for protests in support of Gaza and Palestinian prisoners on Aug. 3

Hamas politburo leader Ismail Haniyeh announces that Saturday, August 3, will be a “national and international day in support of Gaza and [Palestinian] prisoners.”

In a statement published by the terror group, Haniyeh calls for “mass participation” in marches and demonstrations to demand a halt to Israel’s war against Hamas in Gaza, and for an end to the alleged abuse of “heroic” Palestinian security prisoners being held in Israeli detention.

“We look forward to August 3 being a decisive day of visible action in all parts of Palestine, in refugee camps, in the diaspora, in the Arab and Islamic world, and among all free people of the world, in support of our people in the Gaza Strip and our detainees in the prisons of the occupation,” the Hamas leader writes.

One week ago, Al Jazeera reported that Qaddura Fares, an official from the rival Fatah movement who heads the Ramallah-based Palestinian Commission for Detainees’ Affairs, had called for protests on August 3 to shed light on the plight of Palestinian prisoners inside Israeli jails.

At the end of June, there were over 9,100 Palestinian security prisoners detained in Israel, according to Israel Prison Service data.