Kurdish Hunger Striker Gabar Choli Endures Eight-Month Force-Feeding in Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Detention

Gabar Choli, a Kurdish filmmaker and activist, was subjected to involuntary force-feeding for eight months while detained at the Port Isabel Service Processing Center in Los Fresnos, Texas. ICE guards restrained him as medical staff inserted a nasogastric tube through his nose and esophagus twice daily, delivering nutritional liquid despite his refusal. Choli reports severe physical injuries—including swollen sinuses, esophageal damage, and stomach problems—and lasting psychological trauma.

Common Dreams

Choli arrived in the United States from Canada in 2022 and sought asylum after receiving death threats for his Kurdish-independence activism. An immigration judge denied his asylum claim in 2024 but barred deportation to Iran. He was arrested during an ICE check-in on February 25, 2025—the month after former President Donald Trump returned to the White House. After a brief stay at a private detention facility in California, Choli began a hunger strike to protest conditions and the lack of a case resolution.

Common DreamsThe Guardian

• February 25, 2025 – Arrest during ICE check-in.

The Guardian

• Late May 2025 – ICE initiates force-feeding at Port Isabel.

The Guardian

• January 2026 – Choli is deported to Canada after eight months of forced feeding.

Common Dreams

• August 4, 2026 – Department of Homeland Security (DHS) sources report that ICE obtained court orders for involuntary medical treatment for 18 hunger strikers between January 2025 and this date.

The Guardian

• 18 hunger strikers received court-ordered involuntary medical treatment from ICE between January 2025 and August 4, 2026 (Guardian).

The Guardian

• Choli’s force-feeding lasted eight months, with twice-daily tube insertions.

Common Dreams

• Medical records note swollen sinuses, esophageal damage, and stomach problems as direct consequences (court documents reviewed by the Guardian and Commondreams).

The Guardian

U.S. District Judge Rolando Olvera (appointed by former President Barack Obama) granted ICE’s requests, extending the force-feeding order multiple times and denying Choli’s request for legal representation.

The Guardian

Dr. International human-rights groups similarly classify forced feeding of hunger strikers as torture. The World Medical Association’s Declaration of Malta advises physicians not to force-feed individuals who voluntarily refuse nutrition, underscoring a clash between ICE’s policy and established medical ethics.

Common Dreams

Many of the court records pertaining to Choli’s case are sealed, limiting verification of certain details he recounts, such as specific injuries during tube insertion. ICE and DHS have not responded to targeted inquiries about Choli’s experience or broader force-feeding practices, leaving portions of the narrative reliant on the detainee’s testimony and limited documentary evidence.

The Guardian

• “I was respectful. I just told them I am protesting for humane treatment, nothing else,” — Gabar Choli, an immigration judge

The Guardian

• “It just broke me, mentally broke me,” — Gabar Choli, an immigration judge

The Guardian

• “Two guards would hold my feet; two hold my hands; one hold my head—and they would shove tubes in my nose,” — Gabar Choli, an immigration judge

Common Dreams