Just days after The New York Times published a disturbing Op-ed written by a Gitmo inmate staging a hunger strike, 32 more detainees are now participating in the strike.
Over half of all detainees at the US-run Guantanamo Bay military prison are now taking part in the hunger strike, with many being force-fed, a US military spokesman confirmed today.
The number of prisoners on hunger strike has risen to 84, an increase of 32 since last Wednesday, with 16 now receiving “enteral feedings,” a process involving being force-fed via tubes, and five detainees hospitalized.
The military's Muslim adviser in Guantanamo told reporters this week that one or more of the detainees will die before the hunger strike is over:
Zak, a longtime Muslim adviser at Guantanamo who goes only by his first name for security reasons, said detainees in the U.S. military prison have “perfected their methods” for suicide. He predicted the ongoing detainee hunger strike would lead to deaths.
"There will be more than one death,” Zak said. “I'm saying it right now, so next time we meet, you can say, 'Okay, Zak, you told us.’" The detainees, he said, “wanted to die out of hunger and thirst behind covered cameras.”
Reporters listening to morning prayers were evacuated from the higher security Camp 5 after a detainee began feeling faint and had to be evaluated by medical personnel:
The detainee that prompted the code yellow was okay, military officials later tell reporters. He was feeling dizzy and faint. Medical professionals checked him out and left him in his cell.
It was unclear if the detainee was part of the hunger strike, as reporters were unable to see if detainees refused their meals due to the code yellow evacuation.