JERUSALEM (JTA) — An Israeli court approved the extension of the administrative detention of Meir Ettinger, the suspected head of a right-wing Jewish terrorist cell.

The Lod District Court in central Israel on Tuesday approved the extension of the detention order for four months through June 4. Defense Minister Moshe Yaalon had ordered the extension on Feb. 1.

Administrative detention allows Israeli authorities to hold suspected terrorists for six months at a time without filing formal charges. The detention, which is generally used against Palestinians, can be renewed indefinitely.

Ettinger, who is being held in solitary confinement and recently staged a 17-day hunger strike to protest his detention, was arrested in August for “involvement in violent activities and terrorist attacks that occurred recently, and his role as part of a Jewish terrorist group,” according to Israeli authorities.

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