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Refugees at fourth Australian centre join protest

Asylum seekers at a fourth detention centre in Australia have begun a hunger strike. A spokesman for the Immigration Department spokesman said 17 people at the Port Hedland camp in Western Australia were refusing food and water.

The refugees, who are mainly from Afghanistan and the Middle East, are protesting at long delays in processing their claims for asylum. Detainees at four of Australia's six detention centres for illegal immigrants are now on hunger strike.