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CNN Sunday Morning

Gitmo Detainees Observe Seasonal `Feast'

Aired February 24, 2002 - 07:37   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN ANCHOR: Muslims around the world are celebrating Eid, a feast marking the end of the Hajj pilgrimage to Mecca.

As Bob Franken reports, the al Qaeda and Taliban detainees held in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba are also observing the feast, but under different circumstances.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BOB FRANKEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: As the Hajj, the pilgrimage to Mecca comes to end each year, the Muslim world partakes in the special feast of sacrifice. It's a time of celebration. But here, the detainees' meals were passed into them. They feasted in their Camp X- Ray cells.

ABUHENA SAIF ULISLAM, LIEUTENANT, U.S. MARINE CORPS: This is the first time for them to be under the circumstances of not being able to celebrate the way they used to. So you know, it's the best we can do for the time.

FRANKEN: The best was a paper plate with lamb stew, rice, beans, cabbage, cheese, milk and the Mideast pastry baklava for desert.

MICHAEL LEHNERT, BRIG. GEN., U.S. MARINE CORPS: If you're using the term "feast," it's only in relative terms. It is a special meal. It is a special meal in recognition of the religious practices of the majority of these detainees. I would not classify it as a feast.

FRANKEN: It was a slight break for the detainees, who spend long hours in their cages, constantly watched because security forces consider them extremely dangerous. Officials acknowledge that some have gotten so restless that they're starting to defy their captors in small ways.

TERRY CARRICO, COL., U.S. MARINE CORPS: They have all day to just sit there and think of some stuff that maybe they could irritate us with. And that's what it is. It's an irritation.

FRANKEN: The guards are ordered to immediately respond with discipline, usually a short period of isolation for the offender, to constantly remind the detainees they have no hope of resisting, no hope of escape. They combine that with rewards for good behavior. (on camera): Officials point to this meal as another example of their sensitive and humane treatment. As sensitive and humane as they can be, considering the fact that security officers think many of the detainees believe another requirement of their faith is to try and kill their American captors.

Bob Franken, CNN, Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

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