Muhammad al-Qiq

On 15 January 2016, al-Qiq collapsed and was transferred to an intensive care unit and forcibly treated again.

In an interview with Al Jazeera English on 1 February 2016, al-Qiq's wife, Fayha Shalash, said that her husband had signed a document refusing any medical treatment, even if he loses consciousness. "His decision is very clear: either free or dead, not in between," Shalash said.

Starting 10 January 2016, the hospital forcibly fed al-Qiq for four consecutive days. He was strapped to his bed, unable to get up for any reason, and fed intravenously.

On 2 February 2016 it was reported that al-Qiq has lost significant hearing, and he is still conscious and refuses any medical treatment.

On 6 February 2016 (74th consecutive day) it was reported that al-Qiq has lost his ability to speak due to his frail health, and that he only communicates in writing. He has said he will continue his hunger strike until "martyrdom or freedom".

On Sunday 7 February 2016, al-Qiq refused an Israeli offer to be released in May. While still gravely ill and at risk of death, the hunger striker is insisting on an immediate end to his administrative detention. Pointing out an apparent inconsistency in the reasons given by Israel for detaining al-Qiq and the offer of release on 1 May, Amnesty International asked: If al-Qiq was detained for real and imperative reasons of security, how can the authorities know he will no longer pose a threat as of 1 May?

On Wednesday 27 January 2016, the European Union said it was "especially concerned" about the prisoner's deteriorating health.

On Thursday 28 January 2016, the International Committee of the Red Cross said that after 64 days, al-Qiq's hunger strike "has entered a critical stage" and his life was being put at risk. They called on Israel "to find a solution that will avoid any loss of life."

In a statement issued on Tuesday 2 February 2016, the United Nations Coordinator for Humanitarian Assistance and Development Aid, Robert Piper, reiterated "the United Nations' long-standing position that all administrative detainees – Palestinian or Israeli – should be charged or released without delay".

On 8 February 2016, Amnesty International expressed further concern that al-Qiq is at imminent risk of death and remains effectively detained without charge or trial.

On 14 January 2016, the International Federation of Journalists and its affiliate the Palestinian Journalists Syndicate expressed deep concern over al-Qiq's health and demanded his immediate release.

At 2:00 am on 21 November 2015, al-Qiq was arrested at his home in Ramallah. Israel Security Agency says al-Qiq had been arrested for "terror activity" for Islamist group Hamas.

In 2003, Al-Qiq was imprisoned for a month; in 2004, he was imprisoned for 13 months for "Hamas-related activities"; and in 2008, he was "sentenced to 16 months on charges linked to his activities on the student council at the West Bank's Birzeit University."

Muhammad al-Qiq, born 1982, married and father of two children, lives in the village of Abu Qash in the Ramallah District in Palestine. He has a master's degree in Contemporary Arab Studies from Birzeit University.