An MP has held a protest outside a Surrey prison calling for urgent medical treatment for a prisoner on hunger strike.
Coventry South MP Zarah Sultana said Qesser Zuhrah was “critically ill” and faced an “immediate” risk of dying after refusing food for 46 days. Ms Zuhrah is being held on remand at HMP Bronzefield while awaiting trial.
The charges relate to activities linked to Palestine Action before the group was banned under terrorism legislation. The HMP Bronzefield hunger strike protest drew campaigners to the prison gates as concerns over her health escalated.
Posting on X, Sultana said an ambulance was being refused entry to the prison and called for urgent action. Later on Wednesday, she and other protesters confirmed Ms Zuhrah had been transferred to hospital.
The government proscribed Palestine Action under the Terrorism Act in July, making membership of or support for the group a criminal offence punishable by up to 14 years in prison. The decision followed an announcement on 23 June by the then Home Secretary Yvette Cooper.
She said the vandalism of two planes at RAF Brize Norton was “disgraceful” and described the group as having a “long history of unacceptable criminal damage”. The ban remains in force.
Palestine Action co-founder Huda Ammori was granted permission to appeal in July after lawyers argued the proscription breached the right to free speech. A request to temporarily lift the ban was refused, with High Court judges expected to rule within weeks on its lawfulness.
Sultana detailed her concerns in a series of posts. She wrote: “I am urgently on my way to HMP Bronzefield.
“Palestine hunger striker Qesser Zuhrah, now on day 46, is being refused an ambulance by the prison.
“She is critically ill and at immediate risk of dying. I have contacted [Justice Secretary] David Lammy and [Health Secretary] Wes Streeting and received no response.”
Green Party peer Baroness Jenny Jones was also present at the HMP Bronzefield hunger strike protest. She later said she had been assured Ms Zuhrah was taken to hospital before leaving the scene.
“The protesters were all ages, all colours but very united and working well,” she said.
Footage shared on X by campaign group Defend Our Juries showed an ambulance leaving the prison. Sultana confirmed shortly after 20:00 GMT that Ms Zuhrah had been transferred to hospital.
South East Coast Ambulance Service confirmed it attended the prison on Wednesday but declined to provide further details.
A spokesperson for HMP Bronzefield said it could not comment on individual cases but stated prisoners “have full access to healthcare”. The spokesperson said this included treatment at “external medical facilities if needed”.
They added: “Any prisoner refusing food receives regular medical assessment and support from clinicians, as well as being offered mental health support.” The prison said prisoners were managed according to policies assessing “individual risks and security status”.
Protests were reported at five prisons involving eight people, including Ms Zuhrah, all charged with offences linked to Palestine Action before the ban. Lawyers representing the group warned in a letter seen by the BBC that there was a “real and increasingly likely potential” their clients could die in prison during the protests.
