Guantanamo Bay prisoners held by U.S. show signs of "accelerated ageing": ICRC

DOHA, April 24 (Xinhua) -- Prisoners who have been held for years by the United States at the Guantanamo Bay detention facility are exhibiting signs of "accelerated ageing," Al Jazeera reported on Saturday, quoting a senior official from the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC).

Patrick Hamilton, the head of delegation for the United States and Canada at the ICRC, told Al Jazeera that the "physical and mental health needs are growing and becoming increasingly challenging" for prisoners at Guantanamo Bay.

Hamilton made the remarks after he paid a visit to the facility in March. He said he was "struck by how those who are still detained today are experiencing the symptoms of accelerated ageing, worsened by the cumulative effects of their experiences and years spent in detention," according to the report.

In a statement, Hamilton urged the U.S. administration and congress to "work together to find adequate and sustainable solutions to address these issues."

The Guantanamo Bay detention facility in Cuba was set up in 2002 by U.S. President George W. Bush's administration to accomodate foreign suspects in the wake of the 9/11 attacks in 2001.

The facility has been widely associated with the brutality of the United States' so-called "war on terror", as interrogators used harsh techniques that some critics have said amounted to torture.