Washington, August 27 (RHC)-- U.S. officials say a Navy nurse who refused to force feed hunger-striking prisoners at the Guantanamo Bay military prison has been sent home, and is facing court martial.

The nurse was the first and apparently only member of the medical staff at the prison to refuse to take part in the procedure and has now been sent on leave, US officials said on Tuesday.

The Navy said his conduct will be investigated and declined to name the nurse, who is facing a court martial.

According to reports, the nurse was facing court martial after being administratively separated from Joint Task Force-Guantanamo, the military unit that administers the prison.

Lawyers for prisoners have praised the nurse for refusing to take part in what they call an unnecessarily harsh form of force-feeding. Many prisoners are on a long-running hunger strike in protest over their indefinite confinement and the fact that many of them have been imprisoned for years without ever going to trial.

There are still 149 inmates at the prison which was set up after the September 11, 2001, attacks.