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LOS ANGELES - The US military has described as blatantly false a claim that Australian Guantanamo Bay inmate David Hicks was forcibly sedated.
Guantanamo officials took the extraordinary step today of listing the ingredients in a medication cocktail they said Hicks was given for a stomach ailment.
The medication consisted of a mixture of a liquid antacid similar to Mylanta and a mild anaesthetic, while Hicks also was given Benadryl, an antihistamine, they said.
"He made no mention of any adverse side effects," Commander Robert Durand, director of public affairs at Joint Task Force Guantanamo, said.
Hicks' US military lawyer, Major Michael Mori, went public on the weekend with allegations Hicks was sedated against his will.
Australian consular officials are investigating the claim.
Mori said Hicks was given medication in early February just before he was taken from his cell to be told what charges would be sworn against him.
The drugs sedated Hicks for almost 24 hours and, because of the medication, he was unable to comprehend what was happening when the charges were being explained to him by Guantanamo officials, Mori said.
"Major Mori's recent statements to the press about the 'forceable sedation' of his client are blatantly false," Durand responded.
"It is ironic that Major Mori is raising this issue, since it was Major Mori who specifically requested that medical personnel visit his client and treat him for a number of medical ailments, including complaints about stomach pain."
Durand listed the medicines in a statement released to the media.
"On February 2, Major Mori's client was administered a mixture of medications commonly referred to as a 'GI (gastrointestinal) cocktail'," Durand wrote.
"Generally consisting of a mixture of a liquid antacid (similar to Mylanta) and a mild anaesthetic (such as lidocaine), the ingredients can be mildly elevating, mildly sedating and work to relieve nausea and control pain.
"On the same day, Major Mori's client also received Benadryl which can be mildly sedating. Major Mori's client was seen again the next day and said the medications had improved his stomach pain."
Durand said when Hicks was advised of the charges he "asked when he was going to receive his next dose of medication for his stomach".
"He made no mention of any adverse effects from the medication and he appeared lucid and understood what was going (on) around him, engaging in conversation and asking questions about the meaning and effect of the unsworn charges."
Durand said Guantanamo inmates received medical attention exceeding the standard of US prisons.
"Joint Task Force Guantanamo is dedicated to the safe and humane care and custody of detained enemy combatants," he said.
"Within the Joint Task Force, the Joint Medical Group closely monitors the health of all detainees.
"About 107 medical personnel, including seven physicians, are dedicated to serving the medical needs of approximately 385 detainees.
"This greatly exceeds the US Bureau of Prisons standard, which calls for one physician, 20 hours per week, per 500 inmates."
Hicks, 31, formerly of Adelaide, was captured in Afghanistan in December 2001 and has been held at the US detention facility at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, since January 2002.
Hicks will be arraigned at a court hearing at Guantanamo next Monday.
He faces a charge of providing material support for terrorism and is expected to plead not guilty.
- AAP
