RAMALLAH, May 3 (Xinhua) -- Palestinian journalists on Thursday boycotted a reception by the U.S. Consulate in Jerusalem, protesting against the lack of U.S. pressure on Israel to respond to demands of hunger striking Palestinian prisoners.

Dozens of journalists to take part in activities marking the World Press Freedom Day gathered in a hotel that hosted the reception in the West Bank city of Ramallah, holding Palestinian flags and banners, slamming the United States for neglecting the issue of prisoners.

"The freedom of the press is the freedom of the prisoners ... there is nothing valuable than releasing them," said Mervat Sadeq, a journalist from Ramallah who took part in the protest.

On Wednesday, 20 Palestinian unions, including the Palestinian Journalists Syndicate, called for boycotting the reception.

The boycott was "to protest against the U.S. policies toward our national issues," the unions said in a statement.

On Sunday, dozens of Palestinian prisoners went on a hunger strike, joining at least 1,500 detainees who demand improvements in their imprisonment circumstances.

The strike, started on April 17, is the biggest ever collective protest by the Palestinian prisoners. Before that, several prisoners fasted individually, including two Islamic Jihad members who did not eat for 66 and 44 days respectively.

The main demand for the prisoners is to stop the so-called administrative detention, under which Israel can keep some Palestinians in prison without a charge, based on secret information that cannot be revealed in courts.