Posted on 04/09/2007 11:32:25 PM PDT by Aussie Dasher
THIRTEEN detainees are on hunger strike at the US military base in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, and are being force-fed through tubes, the US Navy said overnight.
"Currently, there are 13 hunger strikers at Guantanamo. Two of the 13 have been on hunger strike since August 2005. Most of the others began their hunger strike in January or February," navy Commander Robert Durand said.
He said the group were being fed via tubes, but were otherwise "in good health".
"The involuntary feeding is not designed to break the hunger strike, it is a medical procedure to deliver the appropriate calories and nutrition necessary for good health," he said.
Comm Durand said the start of the hunger strike had coincided with the trial of Australian terror suspect David Hicks at the remote military base last month which was attended by a large number of journalists.
"As soon as the media left, the number of hunger strikers has been steadily dropping," he said.
He said that launching a hunger strike was "a tactic taught in the al-Qaeda training manual ... and is designed to elicit maximum media attention".
(Excerpt) Read more at news.com.au ...
Make that 18 months...
After all, we heard that it's such a peaceful way to go. And if they really want to, well who are we to stand in the way of the choices they've made.
But that's just me. I'm a compassionate kind of guy.
Of course if it were up to me I'd be force feeding 'em copper and lead 230 grains at a time.
L
Why do we want our enemies in good health?
They've been there for years, we should have all the information we need out of them by now. And if there are new detainees from whom we need information, it's not necessary to make them healthy and happy. At least take away their cable TV and air conditioning, and only let them have a Koran if they squeal on their fellow inmates.
If they go on a hunger strike, let them be.
Let them starve. But also torture them with the aroma of a great meal, wafting all around, throughout the day.
Yummy, Bacon grease.
Why? Why do we care? Pith the nape of their necks and burn the bodies.
Nah... where’s your compassion [and your imagination, which is much more important]? Force feeding - one day orally, next day rectally, and then repeating the cycle - using the same catheter, of course.
Haven’t a lot of these Gitmo goons gotten fat on 4,000 cals daily? Could be nothing more than a crash diet.
After 5 years in the joint, David Hicks is as fat as a fool. It’s a bloody 5 star resort for terrorists!!!
If they don’t want to eat, don’t make them.
The liberals shouldn’t have any trouble with this, after all, they do believe in choice.
****
Given recent comments on the damage that can be done due to a lack of Vitamin D, has anyone considered how this might be affecting these hunger strikers? Most people need about 1000IU of Vitamin D a day which comes quickly with sunshine but is much harder to a achieve via diet. For example a glass of milk or orange juice contains about 100IU vitamin D. Can Mr Durand assure us that they have been getting extra doses of multivitamins for all these years?
sarc/off
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