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TV journo 'deteriorating'
11/10/2007 13:07 - (SA)
San Juan - A hunger-striking TV cameraman at the Guantanamo Bay prison has lost significant weight in recent weeks and his health appears to be worsening, the Committee to Protect Journalists said on Wednesday, citing the man's lawyer.
The US military, however, challenged the assertion and said the journalist, Sami al-Haj, is in no immediate danger.
Al-Haj, a cameraman for the Al-Jazeera TV network held at Guantanamo since June 2002, has been on hunger strike for nine months, protesting his confinement and conditions at the prison on a Navy base in Cuba where the US holds about 330 men.
The cameraman, who is force-fed daily with a feeding tube inserted through his nose to keep him from starving himself, was "very thin and frail", during a visit last week, his attorney, Clive Stafford Smith, told the CPJ.
"He has obviously lost a significant amount of weight since I last saw him," Stafford Smith said. "My impression is that his mental state has further deteriorated."
In August, Stafford Smith raised similar concerns - and Guantanamo officials rejected them at the time, saying al-Haj was at 102% of his ideal body weight and 20 pounds heavier than when he was first taken to Guantanamo.
"There's been no significant change in Mr al-Haj's health since we responded to Mr Stafford Smith's allegations in late August," said Navy Commander Rick Haupt, a Guantanamo Bay spokesperson.
Al-Haj, 38, is believed to be the only journalist from a major international news organisation held at Guantanamo. Authorities accused him of transporting money in the 1990s for a charity that allegedly provided money to militant groups, but no charges have been filed against him.
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