Must not laugh at Palestinians

Pizza Hut has apologised after being accused of mocking a Palestinian hunger striker with an advert that suggested he should have some pizza.

The company's Israeli franchise reportedly shared an image that appears to show prisoner Marwan Barghouti secretly breaking his fast by eating a candy bar in his jail cell.

The Facebook post - which was branded 'inhuman' by outraged Palestinians - shows a pizza box seemingly photoshopped onto the floor, as well as a slice of pizza in the sink.

'Barghouti, if you are going to break your strike, isn't pizza the better choice?' the caption read above the screenshot.

The image was a screengrab from a video released by Israeli police on Sunday reportedly showing Barghouti eating a candy bar and cookies in his prison cell.

The footage, two videos shot days apart from a camera mounted on the ceiling of the cell, do not conclusively show that the prisoner is Barghouti, 58, and it is not entirely clear what he is eating or whether he is doing so.

Barghouti's supporters say the video is a fabrication intended to break the prisoners' morale.

It was quickly removed from the Facebook page - though it was still found on the page of at least one local branch.

A spokeswoman for Pizza Hut International apologised for the post, saying: 'It was completely inappropriate and does not reflect the values of our brand.

More than 1,000 Palestinian prisoners have been on hunger strike since April 17 over their treatment in Israeli jails.

SOURCE