Thousands of people have written protest letters about the treatment of Omar Deghayes and other Guantanamo Bay hunger strikers.

Amnesty International, which has featured the Brighton resident's case as part of its campaigns materials, said more than 400 people in the UK and thousands worldwide had responded to the human rights group's request to bombard the US authorities with correspondence.

A spokesman for the group said letter writing was an effective way of reminding captors the world was watching them.

He said: "It can have a profound effect on authorities.

"In the past Amnesty letter writing campaigns have led to improved conditions, stayed death sentences and prison releases.

"We hope that will be the case with Omar."

The spokesman said he expected recent media coverage of Mr Deghayes' case to inspire more letters in the coming weeks.

On Friday, The Argus reported that 36-year-old Mr Deghayes, from Saltdean, was being force-fed by soldiers at the US military base in Cuba.

His lawyer, Clive Stafford-Smith, claims he and 20 other inmates are being pinned down and fed through tubes pushed down their nostrils.

He said they have been shackled by the arms and legs for at least 30 days while their stomachs are pumped with high-energy concentrates in an attempt to defeat their hunger strike, now in its 60th day.

More than 200 detainees, many of whom have been incarcerated without charge for more than three years, have refused to accept food until they are given fair trials.

Six of the ten British residents being held at the prison are believed to be taking part in the protest, including Mr Deghayes.

He was granted refugee status in the UK after fleeing Libya with his family in the Eighties.

Mr Deghayes has been held at Guantanamo Bay since being arrested in Pakistan in 2002.

The Argus is campaigning for the UK Government to intervene in his case and lobby for a fair trial in accordance with international law.

Letters of support for Mr Deghayes can be sent to Justice for Omar, The Argus, 9 Dyke Road, Brighton, East Sussex, BN1 3FE.

They will be forwarded to Guantanamo Bay.

Sabri Ben Ameur of the Brighton and Hove Muslim Forum said: "By writing a letter to Omar we can keep his morale up and let him know we are behind him."