This is the 4040th most frequent Japanese word.
ハンスト
"Hunger strike."
The term ハンスト is used here to indicate 'hunger strike', referring to a voluntary abstention from eating to protest or make a statement.
彼は政治的な理由でハンストを始めました。
He started a hunger strike for political reasons.
In this context, ハンスト emphasizes the method of protest used by the activists to make their demands known.
活動家たちはハンストを通じて政府に要求を伝えました。
The activists conveyed their demands to the government through a hunger strike.
Here, ハンスト describes the action of participating in a movement where refraining from food serves as the means of protest.