Cospito stops hunger strike

(ANSA) - ROME, APR 19 - Jailed anarchist leader Alfredo Cospito on Wednesday said he was stopping a hunger strike he began on October 20 against the tough prison regime he is being held under, normally reserved for Mafia bosses.
    Cospito, the 55-year-old leader of the Informal Anarchists' Federation (FAI), made the decision after the Constiutional Court paved the way for his 30-year sentence not being turned into a life term for an attack on a Carabinieri barracks.
    The anarchist leader, who lost 45 kg in his hunger strike before recently toning it down, is serving 2' years for that attack, in which two Carabinieri were hurt, and a further 10 years for kneecapping a nuclear company executive.
    There had been fears Cospito would get seriously ill or even die on his strike, which forced him to be moved from a Sardinian jail to a Milan one with better health facilities.
    Cospito's appeal to be released from 41 bis have been turned down by Justice Minister Carlo Nordio as well as the courts.
    He was campaigning for the regime, which mandates almost complete isolation from the outside world, to be lifted for all inmates, including mafiosi.
    His battle spurred anarchists in Italy and abroad to stage violent protests and arson attacks in his support. (ANSA).