Force-feeding
Guantanamo detainee challenges force-feeding practices
Emad Abdullah Hassan filed a federal lawsuit on Tuesday in the US District Court for the District of Columbia that challenges the force-feeding procedures at the Guantanamo Bay military prison. Hassan, who has been held in Guantanamo since 2002, alleges that he has been force-fed more than 5,000 times since 2007 in an effort to end his hunger strike. Hassan's case will be the first time at a court will review the force-feeding procedures used at Guantanamo since the US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit ruled last month that federal judges have jurisdiction to hear such cases. Hassan's attorney argues that the force-feeding procedures amount to torture and says that he hopes the lawsuit will force the military to hand over documents regarding detainee policies and procedures.
The treatment of prisoners at Guantanamo Bay has raised human rights concerns internationally, and, in recent months, the US has grappled with the complexities of the laws of war and the due process rights of detainees. In January President Obama reiterated his commitment to closing the military prison by the end of 2014 as the US shifts away from a "permanent war footing." That same month, Amnesty International (AI) released a statement demanding that the US close Guantanamo, calling the prison's continued operation a "prime example of the US' double standard on human rights." Also in January, the panel review board (PRB) administered by the Department of Defense (DOD) under Executive Order 13567 concluded its first review and cleared a former Guantanamo detainee for transfer to Yemen.
(Published by Jurist – March 12, 2014)