– First-Ever Trial to Assess Guantanamo Force-Feeding Begins Today (Common Dreams, Oct 6, 2014):
LONDON – An unprecedented trial to assess the legality of force-feeding methods used at Guantanamo Bay will begin today, Monday Oct 6, at 10am (EST) in courtroom 26A of the District Court, Washington DC.
The trial, in the case of Dhiab v. Obama, will be open to the public after the US Government’s request to have it held in secret was denied by District Court Judge Gladys Kessler. Today’s hearing comes in the wake of Judge Kessler’s ruling on Friday that the US must release several hours of video footage showing cleared Syrian detainee Abu Wa’el Dhiab, who is represented by international human rights NGO Reprieve, being force-fed and manhandled to the force-feeding chair.
In the first trial of its kind, Mr Dhiab, who has been cleared for release since 2009, is challenging the legality of the force-feeding practices used against hunger strikers at Guantánamo. These practices include movement of compliant prisoners to force-feeding by the ‘Forcible Cell Extraction Team’, a squad of soldiers in riot gear, and the use of a painful multi-point restraint chair.
Three expert witness doctors are due to testify in open court–two of them after examining Mr. Dhiab at Guantánamo – and are expected to describe the daily procedure as both punitive and abusive.
Two of the doctors due to testify have previously conducted an independent medical examination of Guantanamo’s last remaining British resident, Shaker Aamer, who has been cleared for release since 2007. Despite the British government’s position being that Mr Aamer should be returned to his wife and children in London he remains detained at the US prison.
Cori Crider, an attorney at Reprieve who will be representing Mr Dhiab in court, said: The government has tried, at every possible opportunity, to deny our client his day in court to challenge the abusive and punitive way in which he is force-fed. Thankfully the principles of open justice have prevailed. We look forward to shining a light on the awful tactics being used to punish Guantanamo detainees who are peacefully protesting in objection to their indefinite detention without charge or trial.”
###
Reprieve is a UK-based human rights organization that uses the law to enforce the human rights of prisoners, from death row to Guantánamo Bay.
Both of these men have been found innocent, and cleared for release years ago, 2007 for one, 2009 the other. But, Obama has said none of them will ever be released.
Why?
Because the behavior and torture and sadistic practices in that prison of evil would be published, and the black stain on the image of the US would be even larger……Obama doesn’t seem to respect the constitution or the law, those men need to be freed.
They literally keep them in cages like animals. They chain them to gurneys to move them around, the prisoners face up and vulnerable to any sadistic act by the guards. Prisons are full of sadists, and Gitmo is far worse. It is proof all the ideals and principles the US was once built upon are gone.
Some of my ancestors served in the American Revolution. I wish, oh, how I wish they had stayed home in England.
The US has become what it once fought against with much of the free world…….as evil and dreadful as Nazi Germany…..at least at Gitmo.
They cannot come clean. If they did, the world would rise up and attack. How barbaric and cruel. Man is the most destructive beast on the planet.
If you come to CA, our beaches are covered with barnacles. Thank Japan and Fukushima. Japan has just as evil a history as the US. Another evil that ought to be addressed in the world court.
Where is the world court? Does it exist any longer?
I really wish the world court would get on this, US media is saying nothing about it…….of course. Obfuscation and fear mongering about Ebola covers most of it.
I am heartsick.