Gitmo prisoners protest detentions with hunger strike News
Gitmo prisoners protest detentions with hunger strike

[JURIST] Fifty-two detainees at the Guantanamo Bay prison camp are protesting their detentions and allegedly inhumane treatment by refusing meals, according to a statement released Thursday by the naval base's Joint Task Force [official website]. The prisoners have so far given up nine consecutive meals, but US military officials said "indications are that this is a temporary effort" to protest their detentions. The number of hunger strikers is much less than that reported by two Afghan detainees [JURIST report] released Wednesday, who said over 180 prisoners were refusing to eat. The Center for Constitutional Rights (CCR) [official website] confirmed the strike [CCR report] saying the prisoners' demands include clean food and water, increased respect for their religion, and fair trials with adequate legal representation. Aljazeera has more.

THIS DAY @ LAW

Pope Urban II sparks First Crusade

Pope Urban II threw his support behind what would become the First Crusade on November 27, 1095 during the Council of Clairmont. The Pope urged the council's participants to render aid to the Byzantine Empire, which was being attacked by the Seljuks. Pope Urban called for a wide coalition of rich and poor to combat the threat, which eventually resulted in the conquest of much of the Muslim-controlled Levant by the Crusaders and the establishment of the Crusader States. Read Pope Urban's address.  

Catholic Code of Canon Law revised

On November 27, 1983, the revised Code of Canon Law of the Roman Catholic Church went into effect. Learn more about the history of Canon Law from Professor Kenneth Pennington of the Catholic University of America's Columbus School of Law.

Alfred Nobel creates Nobel Prize in his will

On November 27, 1895, Alfred Nobel signed his will, creating the Nobel Prize. Learn more about the history of the Nobel Prize and the Nobel Commission.