California prison officials said on Wednesday that inmates have ended a 60-day hunger strike petitioning the use of solitary confinement, the Los Angeles Times reported.
Sources close to protest leaders say the strike ended after state legislators called for public hearings on conditions in California's maximum security prisons and solitary confinement last week.
The state's Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation released a statement on Thursday saying that all 100 inmates have began eating full meals and are now undergoing medical treatment as they return to normal eating habits.
"We are pleased this dangerous strike has been called off before any inmates became seriously ill," state prisons chief Jeffrey Beard said in the statement. "I'd like to commend my staff and the staff with the federal Receiver's Office for working together to ensure the health and safety of all employees and inmates was a top priority. CDCR will continue to implement the substantive reforms in California's Security Housing Units that we initiated two years ago."
A public rally will be held in Oakland on Thursday, where representatives for inmates plan to make their own announcement.
The hunger strike began on July 8 when 30,000 inmates refused to eat state-issued meals. According to the Los Angeles Times, most prison officials would not negotiate with inmates when it came time to eat.
The protest not only spread across state prisons but also garnered attention from famous activists and celebrities, including Gloria Steinem and Jay Leno, who compared the conditions of the state's solitary confinement cells to Abu Ghraib.
The notable supporters signed a letter written by the National Religious Campaign Against Torture address to California Gov. Jerry Brown.
California currently has 4,000 inmates in segregation cells and another 6,600 in temporary isolation, which prison officials said were used to control gang violence.
