Chelsea Manning ends hunger strike, granted gender reassignment surgery
WikiLeaks source, Chelsea Manning, who serving prison sentence for espionage, said she was ‘unendingly relieved’ that military agreed to allow treatment recommended by her psychologist
Imprisoned US soldier Chelsea Manning has ended her short-lived hunger strike after the army said she would be allowed to receive gender transition surgery, the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) has announced.
28-year-old Manning is serving a 35-year prison term for passing classified files to WikiLeaks.
She has been on a hunger strike since Friday.
According to the Guardian, the ACLU said that Manning’s treatment would begin with the surgery that was recommended by her psychologist in April.
“I am unendingly relieved that the military is finally doing the right thing. I applaud them for that. This is all that I wanted – for them to let me be me,” Manning said.
The army private formerly known as Bradley Manning revealed after being convicted of espionage that she identified as a woman.
No transgender inmate had ever before received such surgical treatment in prison, the ACLU said.
In July, Manning attempted suicide over what her representatives said was the government’s denial of appropriate treatment for her gender dysphoria.