Soldiers Unite To Defend Camp X-Ray London Daily Telegraph January 25, 2002 Soldiers Unite To Defend Camp X-Ray American Marines are bruised by criticism of their treatment of Taliban and al-Qa'eda prisoners, reports Toby Harnden in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba Before dawn, the prison camp echoes to the voice of the muezzin as the Muslim inmates are called to prayer. It is 5.17am and Lieut Abuhena Mohammad Saiful-Islam of the US navy is performing his first duty as Camp X-Ray's chaplin and imam. "God is great, God is great," the officer chants in Arabic through a loudspeaker. "I bear witness that Mohammed is his messenger. Come to pray, come to success." The detainees recite the Koran together, the first of the day's five prayer sessions. By mid-morning, they are lounging on mats on the concrete floors of their 8ft-square cages, the blistering sun beating on the tin roofs. Some hang their towels out to dry in the breeze. A few call to each other. Others stand or pace around before slumping again. A Humvee moves slowly around the perimeter as US Marines, M16 assault rifles at the ready, stand guard. From seven wooden watchtowers, guards train their weapons on the captured Taliban and al-Qa'eda fighters, who are clad in orange jump suits. One man is moved back to his cage, his ankles and wrists in shackles. This is Guantanamo Bay, a sleepy and almost forgotten American outpost of 45 square miles on the eastern coast of Cuba. Seized by 646 Marines in whaling boats in 1898 during the Spanish-American War, it has been in US hands ever since - Gitmo, for short, or the Pearl of the Caribbean for those soldiers with a sense of humour. On entering Camp X-Ray, one inmate vowed to kill an American before he left. Another detainee bit a guard trying to subdue him and, two days ago, another spat on a military policeman. Such incidents have been rare, however, and most of the camp's 158 Muslim fanatics are compliant, the guards say. "They're just chilling out, that's exactly what they're doing," said Staff Sgt Chuck Albrecht. "Our guys are pretty dirty. The detainees are washing every day. They get granola bars, a box of apple jacks and fresh fruit." Like most Marines and MPs making up the 1,200-strong force, Staff Sgt Albrecht is angry at accusations that the detainees have been mistreated. The Marines live in an encampment 100 yards from Camp X-Ray's gates. Some of their tents saw service in the Korean War. There are holes in them, but for now the problem is the stifling heat. "The conditions my men live in are very similar to those of the detainees," said Col Terry Carrico. The detainees may be shackled, even as they are operated on at the Gitmo hospital, but they have brand new copies of the Koran and Lively Salon anti-dandruff shampoo that promises "a gentle formula to restore moisture to your beautiful clean hair". Under the tin roofs, there is wood to absorb the sun's heat and keep them cool. Some of the detainees had wrinkled faces, a Marine officer noted. "We'll probably be giving them moisturiser next." Brig Michael Lehnert said each al-Qa'eda fighter would be given eight to 75 Swiss francs per month - as per the Geneva Convention - if their rank was revealed and PoW status accorded. They get "culturally appropriate" halal meals. So do the American soldiers, at Cuba's only McDonald's restaurant or the all-ranks bars where popcorn and pizzas are the only fare. When the detainees wanted water, they got water, said Staff Sgt Monte Webster, an MP. The camp interpreters had even devised a set of hand signals if a Taliban leader was caught short and needed to use the portable lavatory. There are jokes at Camp X-Ray but the sense of danger is ever present. The detainees' toothbrushes are shortened so that they cannot be used as weapons. During a trial in New York in 1998, an al-Qa'eda suspect used a comb to stab a prison warder through the eye into his brain. "Sometimes you're afraid for your life because these people are trained to kill you," said Specialist Fabian Rivas. "They're willing to give their life to take yours." Newspaper coverage of Camp X-Ray in Britain, as relayed by American television and radio, has come close to eroding morale this week. Specialist Rivas said he ignored the press. "It's propaganda. If I let it get to me I would have a very hard time doing my job." Staff Sgt Webster was frustrated. "It bothers me," he said. "We as well as the British have always been the ones who've been humane. How could anybody say we're treating anybody wrong? They don't live it, they don't see it, so how can they talk about it?" Brig Lehnert accepted that the detainees were living in basic conditions but argued that this would improve once permanent facilities were built. At the camp, Marine engineers saw and hammer away as an interrogation centre and new cages are finished. The target capacity is 2,000. When the detainees look up at a watchtower, they see the Stars and Stripes painted on the front of the sniper's perch. A sign pointing to Mecca has just been erected, but the defeated fighters are never allowed to forget that America, their sworn enemy, now controls them.