The Suffering Continues:
A 70-Mile, 20 Hour Journey

The suffering by Dr. Sami Al-Arian and his co-defendant Sameeh
Hammoudeh extended to the one-year anniversary of their unjust
arrest, as they endured a grueling forced transfer back to the
oppressive conditions of Coleman Federal Penitentiary following a
brief four week stay at the local Orient Road Jail in Tampa to
attend court hearings and review evidence.

The men were awakened at 4 am on Wed., February 18 at which point
they were kept in a room for four hours. Thereafter, they were taken
to the Tampa Federal Courthouse where they again had to wait for
four hours until noon when they were rushed to a van awaiting them
outside. They were then taken to Tampa International Airport to
await an incoming flight of transfer inmates from Miami. With their
legs and hands shackled until they reached Coleman, they were forced
to wait for many hours in the back of the vehicle until the flight
arrived with the other prisoners.

The journey to Coleman, Florida, which is 70 miles from Tampa, took
an astonishing eight hours, during which time Dr. Al-Arian and
Hammoudeh were not allowed to leave their uncomfortable seats to
stretch their legs or use bathroom facilities.

By the time they reached Coleman Penitentiary at approximately 9:30
pm, prison officials were angered that the men had returned "too
soon," as there was no room to accommodate them in the solitary
confinement disciplinary section known as the "Special Housing
Unit." The officials then stated that they had expressed these
facts to U.S. Magistrate Judge Thomas McCoun, who allegedly was
fully aware of the situation, but authorized the transfer anyway. As
such, the men were placed in a temporary holding cell with no
chairs, beds, or mattresses, but only the concrete ground on which
to lie and a thin blanket to cover them.

The room was excessively cold, with freezing air rushing through the
vent in the ceiling, which guards refused to turn off. They also
refused to provide them with blankets or warmer clothing. The men
were forced to endure the torturous conditions of this cell for many
hours. Throughout the 20-hour journey, the men were not given any
food or water, and were continuously denied their requests for food
by officers and prison officials who told them to wait until the
following morning's breakfast. Both men had been extremely weary
and fell ill, while Hammoudeh, who is diabetic, suffered from dizzy
spells as a result of this purposeful deprivation. While in the
holding cell, officials confined Dr. Al-Arian and Hammoudeh with
another inmate, who out of sympathy for their suffering throughout
the day, offered them an apple, the only food he had.

The men were ultimately moved back to the SHU where they have
continued to endure the excessively harsh conditions. Their presence
there is predicated on Magistrate McCoun's and Coleman
officials' justification that these pre-trial detainees should
remain in isolation from other inmates "for their own
safety," yet throughout this arduous journey, Dr. Al-Arian and Hammoudeh were frequently kept in the presence of prison inmates.

Sami Al-Arian's wife, Nahla, said: "This trip was also
devastating to me and my kids. During Al-Arian's stay in Orient] my children got used to hearing my husband's voice on the phone every night
before they went to bed, and now in Coleman they won't even have
this small privilege." She added that her husband's move back
to Coleman is extremely distressing to the family, particularly Ali,
13, and Lama, 10, as they feel "the loss of their father in their
life."

One can only continue to draw the conclusion that these measures are
kept in place as part of the continuing emotional, physical, and
psychological torture of these political prisoners. We urge all
concerned citizens to protest the treatment of Dr. Sami Al-Arian and
Sameeh Hammoudeh to Magistrate McCoun, the U.S. Marshall Service,
and the officials at Coleman Penitentiary.