The Health Ministry said Thursday that tests showed that the hemorrhages and fractured ribs found during the autopsy of a Palestinian [3] prisoner who died in Israeli detention last weekend were “characteristic of the resuscitation attempts that were performed on the deceased,” efforts that lasted for 50 minutes. The ministry’s statement added that further tests would be required to determine the cause of death. Israeli officials had initially attributed the death of the prisoner, Arafat Jaradat, 30, to a heart attack; Palestinian officials said that the lack of heart damage, coupled with the signs on Mr. Jaradat’s body, pointed to torture. Mr. Jaradat’s death fueled a wave of protests, intensifying Palestinian concerns for several other prisoners on hunger strikes in Israeli jails.
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