Clashes at Guantanamo over hunger strike prisoners

Prisoners and guards have clashed at Guantanamo Bay as authorities moved inmates, many of whom are on hunger strike, out of communal cellblocks, (BBC) News reported. The move came after detainees covered surveillance cameras and windows, a US Army spokesman said. He said some prisoners used “improvised weapons” and in response “four less-than-lethal rounds” were fired. The Pentagon says 43 prisoners are on hunger strike, but lawyers for the detainees say the number is higher. Almost a dozen are being force-fed, according to military officials. There were no “serious injuries to guards or detainees” in Saturday’s clashes, according to Capt Robert Durand of the US military’s Southern Command. Hunger strikes have happened frequently at the US military prison, but this protest, which began in February, is reportedly one of the longest and most widespread.