A Palestinian Authority (PA) official claimed on Sunday that Israel had agreed to 80 percent of the demands of hunger striking terrorists who ended their hunger strike over the weekend.
Issa Qaraqe, head of the Palestinian Committee of Prisoners' Affairs, said in a statement quoted by Ma'an news that the outcome of the hunger strike was "a fundamental transformation in the terms of the prisoners' living conditions."
The hunger strikers, who were led by senior Fatah leader and archterrorist Marwan Barghouti, agreed to end their 40-day hunger strike on Saturday, following an agreement with the Israel Prison Services (IPS).
According to IPS, Israel reached an agreement with the Red Cross and the Palestinian Authority, allowing the PA to fund a second monthly visit so families can see their terrorist relatives more often.
Security sources said the hunger strikers were not promised any demands included in Barghouti's document, which included more TV channels, a free academic degree, and longer visiting hours.
During the 40-day period, 1,578 imprisoned terrorists, most of them Fatah members, went on a hunger strike. However, over 750 broke their strike in the middle. 16 of the prisoners were hospitalized and will be returned to their prison cells when they are healthy enough to be released.
IPS spokesperson Hana Herbst denied Qaraqe's claims that the terrorists achieved more than 80 percent of their demands, telling Ma'an that "contrary to the reports delivered by Issa Qaraqe, no benefits were given to national security prisoners in return to quitting the hunger strike and there were no negotiations on this matter."
Herbst reiterated IPS's stance that the suspension of the hunger strike "was made possible due to the National Palestinian Authority agreeing to fund the second visit instead of the Red Cross who up to a few months ago was the funding organization," and not due negotiations between hunger-striking prisoners and IPS.
On Saturday night, Public Security Minister Gilad Erdan (Likud) emphasized that the terrorist hunger strike ended without them having received anything.
"The strike began with ludicrous and impractical demands such as placing an air conditioner in every cell, allowing prisoners to watch 20 television channels, providing newspapers and sneakers to each prisoner, providing classes for high school diplomas and academic degrees, and more," Erdan explained.
"Despite the large number of strikers, I made it very clear that we do not negotiate with terrorists. The strike ended with a clear message to arch-terrorist Marwan Barghouti and his murderous friends: We do not negotiate with terrorists," he added.