Mayo emergency Candlelit Vigil in solidarity with Palestine Action hunger strike prisoners

The Mayo branch of the Ireland Palestine Solidarity Campaign (IPSC) held an emergency candlelit vigil in solidarity with Palestine Action prisoners on hunger strike in British prisons.

Afterwards campaigners learned that three of the hunger strikers, whom medics had reported were facing imminent death — Heba Muraisi, Kamran Ahmed, and Lewie Chiaramello — had ended their hunger strikes, following news that the UK government had rejected Elbit Systems’ bid for a £2 billion contract, a central demand of the hunger strikers.

One prisoner, Umer Khalid, remains on hunger strike.

At the vigil, Mayo IPSC reiterated its full support for the prisoners’ demands, including the granting of immediate bail, the right to a fair trial, the de-proscription of Palestine Action, an end to all censorship, and the permanent closure of Elbit Systems operations in the UK.

Elbit Systems manufactures military equipment and weapons used by the Israeli state in its genocide in Gaza and its ongoing illegal occupation of Palestine, killing and wounding hundreds of thousands of Palestinian men, women, and children.

In a statement, hunger striker Heba Muraisi said it is vital “to fight for justice and freedom,” words which were echoed throughout the vigil.

Those attending the Mayo vigil were honoured to hear from Leo Green, a former hunger striker who participated in the first H-Block hunger strike in 1980.

He spent 17 years in prison and fasted for 53 days during that protest.

Addressing the gathering, he drew powerful parallels between the historic Irish hunger strikes and the current struggle faced by Palestine Action prisoners.

Leo Green's words resonated deeply with those in attendance, many of whom described his contribution as very moving.

“Just like the time of the hunger strikes in the H-Blocks, here are people who are standing up to injustice, and they are putting their lives on the line to do so,” he said.

Reflecting on what sustains those on hunger strike, Leo Green quoted Bobby Sands: “What sustains a hunger striker is what Bobby Sands described as ‘the undauntable thought that I’m right.’”

Green criticised the British government’s handling of the case, highlighting the prolonged detention of prisoners without trial.

“Many of these people have been held in prison for two years on charges that ordinarily would have allowed them out within a week. This is not some sort of logjam in the criminal justice system — it is a calculated government decision.”

Drawing historical comparisons, he warned that political leaders who refuse to concede even minimal demands for justice will be judged harshly by history.

“Margaret Thatcher let the hunger strikers die one by one, in the vain belief that they would be forgotten. Thatcher is long gone — and Bobby Sands lives on.”

Speaking about the criminalisation of protest, Green said: “When you think of the hunger strikers’ demands — to close Elbit Systems in the UK — you must remember that Elbit has been manufacturing drones used to kill children.

"Those engaged in civil disobedience to protest this are now described by the British government as terrorists, criminalised for pursuing justice and for being determined to expose and fight injustice.

"The protests in England in support of the prisoners have involved all sectors of society. Hundreds of people have been charged, including an eighty-year-old member of the clergy, simply for sitting on the ground holding a placard that read: ‘We demand justice. We support the prisoners.’”

The Mayo vigil took place at the same time as an IPSC emergency demonstration at the Dáil, amid growing international concern for the prisoners’ lives and welfare and mounting criticism of the British government’s response.

A global solidarity statement supporting the Palestine Action prisoners has been signed by prominent scholars, writers, and activists, including Angela Davis, Tariq Ali, Naomi Klein, and Sally Rooney.

Mayo IPSC described the vigil as both an act of solidarity and a reminder that the struggle for justice — in Ireland, Palestine, and beyond — is deeply interconnected.

The organisation has called on the public to continue supporting the prisoners, to oppose the criminalisation of non-violent protest, and to write messages of solidarity.

Speaking at the vigil, Leo Green said: “Some Elbit Systems factories in the UK have closed down, so the protest is working — and it will continue to work. Ultimately, all protests do.

"This moment will pass, and there will be another crisis about another protest.

"But the entire campaign against the Israeli war machine and its impact on Palestine will continue until, at some point, Netanyahu is brought before a war crimes tribunal. Let us look forward to that day.”

He urged people to write to the prisoners, stating: “They may never receive your letter, but these words all become part of the archive of history.”