Israel has agreed to release 1,027 Palestinian political prisoners in exchange for Gilad Shalit, an Israeli army soldier captured by the Palestinian resistance group Hamas in 2006.

However, thousands of Palestinians remain incarcerated in Israeli prisons.

In June, Israeli PM Binyamin Natanyahu announced tougher restrictions on Palestinian prisoners. These restrictions include limited access to books and clothes, as well as expanded periods of solitary confinement.

To protest against the restrictions, hundreds of Palestinian prisoners have gone on hunger strike. Recently, Palestinians living in the occupied territories have joined the protest.

Al Jazeera's Charles Stratford reports from Ramallah.