The Zionist Knesset (parliament) approved on Thursday a law allowing prisoners on hunger strike facing death to be force fed.

The Zionist Knesset (parliament) approved on Thursday a law allowing prisoners on hunger strike facing death to be force fed, a spokesman said, a move that has met vehement opposition from the entity's medical association and rights groups.

The legislation promoted by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's rightist coalition reflected the concern of occupation authorities that hunger strikes by Palestinians in its jails could end in death and trigger waves of protests in the occupied West Bank.

The law, which seeks to prevent imprisoned Palestinian militants from pressuring the entity by refusing food, was initially approved in June 2014 at the height of a mass hunger strike of Palestinian prisoners, during which dozens were hospitalized.

While the law does not specifically mention Palestinians, Internal Security Minister Gilad Erdan, who led the legislation, said it was necessary since "hunger strikes of terrorists in prisons have become a means to threaten Israel."

The law, which passed by 46 votes to 40, "will be used only if a doctor determines that the continued hunger strike will create an immediate risk to the life of a prisoner or long-term damage to his health," David Amsalem of the ruling Likud party said.

But opposition members decried the new measure, with the Arab Joint List of parties criticizing "a law to torture Palestinian prisoners, aimed at uprooting their legitimate struggle".

The so-called 'Israeli Medical Association' called the law "damaging and unnecessary," stressing on Thursday its doctors would "continue to act according to medical ethics, which prohibit doctors from participating in torturing prisoners".

It said force feeding was "tantamount to torture".

"Physicians for Human Rights Israel" said the "shameful" law revealed the "anti-democratic face" of the Knesset, saying they would continue to oppose the law and its implementation, and "support anyone who will refuse to obey the law".

Spokeswomen for both organizations said they were considering filing petitions at the high court against the law.

Palestinian prisoner rights group Addameer said the law was a way to provide "legal cover" to the Zionist torture of prisoners, saying it would allow it "to kill more Palestinian prisoners on hunger strike" on top of the five who have died due to force feeding in the Zionist prisons in the past.

According to the Association for Civil Rights in the occupied territories, the majority of prisoners who go on hunger strike are Palestinians in administrative detention, under which they held for renewable six-month periods without charge.

A spokeswoman for the "Israel Prison Service" said there was currently one Palestinian held on administrative detention and four "security prisoners" who had been on hunger strike for over a week.