Wife of Hunger-Striking West Bank Detainee Urges Leaders to End Administrative Detentions

Miriam Dardik, wife of Tal Yinon Dardik who has been on hunger strike for 29 days, issued a public letter on Monday to leaders in Judea and Samaria. She called on them to pressure Central Command Chief Avi Blot and Defense Minister Israel Katz to stop the use of administrative detention orders against settlers. Tal Yinon Dardik is currently held under an administrative detention order signed by Blot, without trial or formal charges, and his health is deteriorating. Miriam reported that her husband’s body temperature dropped to 34 degrees Celsius and his heart rate to 42 beats per minute, placing him at serious risk.

In her letter, Miriam condemned the policy as discriminatory, stating that only settlers in Judea and Samaria face such detention without evidence or trial. She urged local leaders to demonstrate leadership by ending what she called "this cruel persecution" and to reject the treatment of settlers as second-class citizens. She emphasized that her husband’s fight is not only for himself but for the rights of all settlers.

Following concerns over Dardik’s medical condition, a specialist doctor appointed by his family was allowed to visit him in detention after coordination with the Israel Prison Service. The legal advocacy group Honenu noted that Defense Minister Katz had ordered the cancellation of Dardik’s administrative detention about a week ago after a Judea and Samaria appeals committee ruled the order invalid. However, Central Command and the prosecution appealed this decision to the Jerusalem District Court. Honenu criticized the appeal as an attack on elected officials and Israeli democracy, urging Katz to exercise his authority to prevent bureaucratic overreach.

Support for Dardik has come from rabbis, Knesset members, and public figures, including Rabbi Uri Sherki, who called for Dardik’s release and insisted that if he is suspected of crimes, he should face a proper trial. Sherki described the continued detention as blatant discrimination against West Bank settlers.