Mass Hunger Strike in Gitmo Over Quran Confiscations

Officials Confirm Force Feeding at Least Five Detainees

Lawyers are reporting a mass hunger strike at Guantanamo Bay as the latest in a continued protest about the military’s decision to confiscate personal items, including Qurans, from the detainees in Camp 6.

Though exact figures are difficult to come by, One of the lawyers reported that “most” of the detainees in Camp 6 are involved in the strike. The camp houses 130 detainees, the bulk of the camp’s population.

Military spokesmen sought to downplay the significance of it, saying they only recognize nine strikers and that “refusing delivered food does not make a detainee a hunger striker.” Spokesman Robert Durand says at least five detainees are being force fed.

The lawyers have been calling on Rear Admiral John Smith, the commander of the camp, to resolve the situation, warning that many of the detainees are in failing health and that the abuses “threaten to turn back the clock to the worst moments of Guantanamo’s history.”

Author: Jason Ditz

Jason Ditz is Senior Editor for Antiwar.com. He has 20 years of experience in foreign policy research and his work has appeared in The American Conservative, Responsible Statecraft, Forbes, Toronto Star, Minneapolis Star-Tribune, Providence Journal, Washington Times, and the Detroit Free Press.