HAVANA, Jan. 9 (Xinhuanet) -- The U.S. military is force-feeding 32 of 43 "war on terror" detainees who are on a hunger strike in the U.S. naval base in Cuba's Guantanamo Bay, Associated Press reported Monday.

    Several detainees have refused to eat for several months, Lieutenant Colonel Jeremy Martin, director of public affairs, was quoted as saying.

    "There is a core group that is very committed," Martin said, adding that they counseled the detainees on the hazards of a long-term hunger strike.

    If the detainees become weak or malnourished, they are force-fed with intravenously or through a tube inserted through the nose to reach the stomach.

    Guantanamo holds about 500 detainees. Most of them were captured in Afghanistan in the fall of 2001 following the 9/11 attacks on the United States. Enditem