(Photo: ckottl/ Flickr)
Apr 27, 2013
The United States military has come out Saturday and acknowledged that 100 inmates at Guantanamo Bay prison are taking part in the hunger strike.
However, defense attorneys for the striking inmates have, for the past month and a half, said that 'over 100' inmates were partaking in the protest against the cruel and indefinite detention at the US military prison.
According to an email from Lt. Col. Sam House, twenty of the detainees are being force fed--a practice many decry as a form of torture--and five are currently in the hospital.
"We need action now," declared Frida Berrigan of the group Witness Against Torture. "Otherwise, prisoners will die and the shame of a failed policy will only deepen."
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Lauren McCauley
Lauren McCauley is a former senior editor for Common Dreams covering national and international politics and progressive news. She is now the Editor of Maine Morning Star. Lauren also helped produce a number of documentary films, including the award-winning Soundtrack for a Revolution and The Hollywood Complex, as well as one currently in production about civil rights icon James Meredith. Her writing has been featured on Newsweek, BillMoyers.com, TruthDig, Truthout, In These Times, and Extra! the newsletter of Fairness and Accuracy in Reporting. She currently lives in Kennebunk, Maine with her husband, two children, a dog, and several chickens.
The United States military has come out Saturday and acknowledged that 100 inmates at Guantanamo Bay prison are taking part in the hunger strike.
However, defense attorneys for the striking inmates have, for the past month and a half, said that 'over 100' inmates were partaking in the protest against the cruel and indefinite detention at the US military prison.
According to an email from Lt. Col. Sam House, twenty of the detainees are being force fed--a practice many decry as a form of torture--and five are currently in the hospital.
"We need action now," declared Frida Berrigan of the group Witness Against Torture. "Otherwise, prisoners will die and the shame of a failed policy will only deepen."
_____________________
Lauren McCauley
Lauren McCauley is a former senior editor for Common Dreams covering national and international politics and progressive news. She is now the Editor of Maine Morning Star. Lauren also helped produce a number of documentary films, including the award-winning Soundtrack for a Revolution and The Hollywood Complex, as well as one currently in production about civil rights icon James Meredith. Her writing has been featured on Newsweek, BillMoyers.com, TruthDig, Truthout, In These Times, and Extra! the newsletter of Fairness and Accuracy in Reporting. She currently lives in Kennebunk, Maine with her husband, two children, a dog, and several chickens.
The United States military has come out Saturday and acknowledged that 100 inmates at Guantanamo Bay prison are taking part in the hunger strike.
However, defense attorneys for the striking inmates have, for the past month and a half, said that 'over 100' inmates were partaking in the protest against the cruel and indefinite detention at the US military prison.
According to an email from Lt. Col. Sam House, twenty of the detainees are being force fed--a practice many decry as a form of torture--and five are currently in the hospital.
"We need action now," declared Frida Berrigan of the group Witness Against Torture. "Otherwise, prisoners will die and the shame of a failed policy will only deepen."
_____________________
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