Refraining from eating (fasting); can mean a voluntary fast for health or a hunger strike as a form of protest.
医師の指示で手術前は絶食してください。
Please fast before the operation as instructed by the doctor.
彼は宗教的理由で数日間の絶食を行った。
He fasted for several days for religious reasons.
政治犯が待遇改善を求めて絶食を始めた。
A political prisoner began a hunger strike to demand better treatment.