Gur Hamel was convicted of murdering an Arab farmer near Shechem in 2000 and he is serving life in prison. He has gained considerable weight since being imprisoned and he is now suing the Israel Prison Authority for his condition.

In the lawsuit filed on his behalf in the Jerusalem Magistrate Court, Hamel maintains that he has gained 20kg (44 lbs) as a result of having to exist on a diet of bread and chocolate spread from 2006-2007 when prison officials decided he will no longer receive food with a badatz hashgacha. Hamel maintains that as a result of the policy change he had to use his own funds to pay for food.

Hamel is now seeking 220,000 NIS in “body damages”, explaining his overweight condition results in great hardship and has placed him at higher risk for death. He feels the prison service’s flippant attitude towards a prisoner’s beliefs is unacceptable and this is just one case in point.

(YWN – Israel Desk, Jerusalem)