Senator Feinstein Pushes To End Forced-Feedings At Guantanamo Bay
SAN FRANCISCO (CBS/AP) -- The chair of the Senate Intelligence Committee says she's against the force-feeding of hunger strikers at the Guantanamo Bay detention center and she's expressed her concerns to the secretary of defense.
Democrat Dianne Feinstein sent a letter to Secretary Chuck Hagel on Wednesday. She says the force feedings conflict with international norms and don't follow U.S. prison guidelines.
Feinstein says hunger strikes are a form of non-violent protest rather than suicide attempts and says the force feedings raise ethical questions and complicate the Guantanamo situation.
More than 100 prisoners began their strike in February to protest their indefinite detention at the Cuban prison. More than 40 are being force fed. Federal authorities say the feedings are legal.
(Copyright 2013 by CBS San Francisco. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)