MOSCOW, April 21 (RIA Novosti) - The number of inmates who went on hunger strike in the Guantanamo prison has grown to 84 by Sunday, the Miami Herald reported citing a statement by a US military spokesman.
Army Lt. Col. Samuel House said that 84 out of the prison’s 166 inmates are not on hunger strike, 16 of them are being force-fed via tubes.
The number of prisoners who went on hunger strike in protest against their detention has been steadily growing since the protest began last month.
Russia has stepped up its criticism of the prison following the publication of its so-called “Guantanamo List.” The blacklist of US officials banned from entering Russia was published last Saturday in response to a similar US travel ban on Russian officials suspected of human rights violations
Russian Foreign Ministry's Special Representative for Human Rights, Democracy and the Rule of Law, Konstantin Dolgov on April 17 reiterated the call to close the prison and urged its authorities to respect the rights and interests of the facility’s only Russian detainee.
