SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico - The number of Guantanamo Bay detainees participating in a hunger strike has ballooned from three to about 75, the U.S. military said Monday, revealing growing defiance among prisoners held at the U.S. naval base in Cuba for up to 4½ years with no end in sight.

Guantanamo Bay, April 2006. The U.S. military says the number of detainees on hunger strike at Guantanamo Bay has jumped from three to 75. (AFP/POOL/File)

Navy Cmdr. Robert Durand called the hunger strike an "attention-getting" tactic to step up pressure for the inmates' release and said it might be related to a May 18 clash between detainees and guards that injured six prisoners.

The United States now holds about 460 people at Guantanamo on suspicion of links to al-Qaida or the Taliban. But human rights groups say innocent people have been sent to the jail.

Defense lawyers said the hunger strike, which began last year, reflects increasing frustration among men who have little contact with the world outside the remote prison.

The military did not release the names of the striking detainees, and lawyers said they have no way of learning whether their clients are involved until they can visit the base.

Only 10 of the prisoners have been charged and face trial before military tribunals. The U.S. Supreme Court is expected to rule in June whether President Bush overstepped his authority in ordering the tribunals.

U.S. officials classify detainees as being on hunger strike when they have missed nine consecutive meals.

About 76 detainees began the strike in August to protest their confinement, peaking at 131 in the fall, the military has said.

Defense lawyers have accused the military of underreporting the number of hunger strikers.

The lawyers say the number of strikers dwindled to three earlier this year after the military adopted more aggressive measures to force-feed them, including using a restraint chair. U.S. officials said the measures are "safe and humane" and have been used in American civilian prisons.

Four of the detainees on hunger strike are being force-fed, including the three who were participating in the protest before the recent increase, Durand said.

© 2006 Copyright Associated Press

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