3rd Saudi tries to end life at Guantanamo

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RIYADH, Saudi Arabia, July 5 (UPI) -- Just weeks after two Saudi prisoners at Guantanamo committed suicide, a third inmate attempted to end his life amid an outcry over detention conditions.

Saudi daily al-Yom Wednesday quoted an American lawyer defending the Saudi prisoners as saying in a telephone interview that U.S. authorities informed her during a visit to the U.S. detention center in Cuba last week that another Saudi prisoner tried to commit suicide.

Joshe Natreen said prison officials refrained from identifying the inmate, saying he is Saudi but not among the seven Saudi clients.

Natreen said she was skeptical about the reported attempt, noting that "three cases of suicide took place in the prison and the defense lawyers were not able to have a look at the investigation reports."

Natreen said that she and a group of other lawyers have addressed a memorandum to prison authorities stressing the need to guarantee the physical and mental health and fair treatment of the inmates.

Two Saudis and a Yemeni were found dead in their cells in Guantanamo on June 10. U.S. authorities said they conducted an investigation and established that the three inmates had committed suicide.

But the Saudi lawyer appointed by the families of the Saudi prisoners, Kateb Shumari, cast doubt on the U.S. story and called for closing down the prison. Such demands are increasing inside and outside the United States, coupled with human rights groups' campaigns to draw international attention to the plight of prisoners.