Gee - that'd sure be a shame of a few died.....
Prisoners at Guantanamo Bay on hunger strike
By ASSOCIATED PRESS
Two Afghans released Wednesday from detention in Guantanamo Bay in Cuba claimed that about 180 other Afghans held at the US detention facility were on a hunger strike to protest alleged mistreatment and to push for their release.
A US military spokesman at Guantanamo did not immediately respond to an e-mail request for comment.
The two, identified as Habir Russol and Moheb Ullah Borekzai, said they were taken from Guantanamo on Monday and flown back to Afghanistan before being released. By Wednesday, the prisoners would be on their 14th or 15th day of their fast, they said.
"Right now, 180 Afghan prisoners are not eating or drinking," Russol told reporters in Afghanistan after being released. "Some of the prisoners are sick and there is no medical treatment for them."
Borekzai later explained to The Associated Press why the prisoners were protesting:
"Some of these people say they were mistreated during interrogation. Some say they are innocent," he said. "They are protesting that they have been in jail nearly four years and they want to be released."
Neil Koslowe, a Washington D.C.-based lawyer for 12 detainees from Kuwait, said several inmates had told him during a visit to Guantanamo from June 20-24 that there was a "widespread" hunger strike over the amount and quality of water they received.
Koslowe said he was told that the tap water in the camp was discolored, foul smelling and caused gastrointestinal ailments among inmates.
Detainees receive three small bottles of purified water, emblazoned with American flags, each month but that was inadequate in Cuba's tropical climate, the lawyer said.
He said bottled water had also been taken away from detainees who break detention center rules.
http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?pagename=JPost/JPArticle/ShowFull&cid=1121825992926
Prisoners at Guantanamo Bay on hunger strike
By ASSOCIATED PRESS
Two Afghans released Wednesday from detention in Guantanamo Bay in Cuba claimed that about 180 other Afghans held at the US detention facility were on a hunger strike to protest alleged mistreatment and to push for their release.
A US military spokesman at Guantanamo did not immediately respond to an e-mail request for comment.
The two, identified as Habir Russol and Moheb Ullah Borekzai, said they were taken from Guantanamo on Monday and flown back to Afghanistan before being released. By Wednesday, the prisoners would be on their 14th or 15th day of their fast, they said.
"Right now, 180 Afghan prisoners are not eating or drinking," Russol told reporters in Afghanistan after being released. "Some of the prisoners are sick and there is no medical treatment for them."
Borekzai later explained to The Associated Press why the prisoners were protesting:
"Some of these people say they were mistreated during interrogation. Some say they are innocent," he said. "They are protesting that they have been in jail nearly four years and they want to be released."
Neil Koslowe, a Washington D.C.-based lawyer for 12 detainees from Kuwait, said several inmates had told him during a visit to Guantanamo from June 20-24 that there was a "widespread" hunger strike over the amount and quality of water they received.
Koslowe said he was told that the tap water in the camp was discolored, foul smelling and caused gastrointestinal ailments among inmates.
Detainees receive three small bottles of purified water, emblazoned with American flags, each month but that was inadequate in Cuba's tropical climate, the lawyer said.
He said bottled water had also been taken away from detainees who break detention center rules.
http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?pagename=JPost/JPArticle/ShowFull&cid=1121825992926
