10 prisoners are staging a hunger strike calling for the reinstatement of self-suspended prisons chief Alex Dalli to his role.
The prisoners are being monitored by Corradino’s medical team as per standard procedure, LovinMalta reports.
The hunger strike comes a week or so after Dalli suspended himself – on half-pay, as this newsroom revealed on Sunday – following the suicide of another inmate under his watch.
Arun Jose became the 14th person to die under Dalli’s watch and the third person to die by suicide in prison this year.
Dalli’s replacement as acting prisons director is former Red Cross director Robert Brincau.
Besides the hunger strike, other inmates and correctional officers have started circulating and signing a petition for Dalli to be reinstated to his role.
Dalli has been under significant pressure to step aside over a worrying number of deaths within the prison's walls and over stories emerging about questionable practices, including torture and solitary confinement, being used.
The pressure has since extended to Home Affairs Minister Camilleri, with many questioning why the minister had failed to take action against Dalli despite the accusations and allegations that he was facing.