San Juan (Puerto Rico): Muslim detainees at Guantanamo Bay entered Ramadan with traditional sweets, dates and honey, but without a military chaplain to lead them in prayer during Islam's holy month.
Nearly all the alleged al-Qaeda and Taliban members held at the detention centre in Cuba are observing Ramadan, officials said on Tuesday. Meals are offered before dawn and after sunset to accommodate their fasting during daylight hours.
The adjustments for Ramadan, which began Saturday, come as the US prison faces accusations of religious insensitivity.
A court challenge seeking the return of a full-time Muslim chaplain to the base has been filed by one detainee's attorney, who said that regular religious services would help "preserve the sanity" of the detainees.
"I think it would preserve order and discourage these suicides that are happening there," attorney Gaillard Hunt said. A Justice Department spokesman declined to comment on the motion, citing ongoing litigation.
Muslim chaplains, who regularly counseled detainees in the prison's early years have been assigned to US commands with larger numbers of Islamic service members, said Navy Commander Robert Durand.
"The detainee population generally rejects outside religious guidance," he said. Detainees meet their religious needs primarily by relying on each other, with cell blocks designating an imam or prayer leader, he said.
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