Police in riot gear arrested 35 people yesterday during a demonstration at the U.S. base holding the soldier accused of leaking thousands of confidential memos to the Wikileaks website.
Hundreds of supporters had rallied outside the Marine Corps Base Quantico in Virginia wearing T-shirts and carrying signs bearing the smiling image of Bradley Manning.
Many sat underneath a yellow banner which read 'Caution: Whistleblower Torture Zone.'
Short scuffles broke out as dozens of officers attempted to push the protesters, some of whom were seated on the pavement, away from the road.
© Associated PressArrested: A women cries as she is handcuffed outside the Army base in Quantico - she was protesting at the treatment of Bradley Manning, the soldier accused of leaking thousands of confidential memos to the Wikileaks website
© Associated PressProtester Tighe Barry confronts a group of Virginia State Police officers outside the main gate of the Marine Corps Base
© Associated PressHeld: Manning faces nearly two dozen charges, including aiding the enemy, a crime which carries the death penalty or life in prison
They have been charged with 'unlawful assembly' and 'careless interference with traffic'. One protester was also charged with assault and battery of an officer.
Manning, a former intelligence analyst and self-styled 'hactivist', is accused of leaking a raft of Iraq and Afghanistan war logs, more than 250,000 confidential State Department cables and a military video of an attack on unarmed men in Iraq.
The rally was held along with more than two dozen others around the world to protest over the computer analyst's detention.
Manning faces nearly two dozen charges, including aiding the enemy, a crime which carries the death penalty or life in prison.
Army prosecutors, however, have told Manning's lawyers that they will not recommend the death penalty.
The Army Private First Class is held alone in his cell for all but an hour a day. Earlier this month it was revealed that he now wears a suicide-proof sleep suit after complaining of the humiliation of being stripped naked each night after his clothes are taken away.
His lawyer has repeatedly complained that the 23-year-old's strict confinement conditions are punitive, a charge the military has denied.
The military maintains that Manning's treatment complies with U.S. law and military regulations, and it has said that some of the conditions are needed to prevent him from harming himself.
Officials have claimed Manning is on suicide watch and is being treated just like all other prisoners in Quantico - assertions Manning refuted in a recently published letter.
David House, a friend who has visited Manning about 15 times since September, told the protesters that he appreciated their support.
'It's stuff like this that gives Bradley hope,' House said. 'When I go in there, look him in the eyes and say, "Bradley, there are people on the outside that support you," his eyes light up.'
© Associated PressDaniel Ellsberg, the former military analyst who in 1971 leaked the Pentagon Papers, speaks to the crowd of protesters yesterday. Ellsberg was the former military analyst who leaked the Pentagon's secret history of the Vietnam War that was later published in major newspapers.
© Associated PressLed away: In all about 35 people were arrested for not clearing the road outside the base, where the 23-year-old who allegedly handed classified information to WikiLeaks, is being held
© PhotoshotSource: WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange allegedly used Manning's information to lay bare U.S. foreign policy
Several leaders of the rally wanted to lay flowers at an Iwo Jima memorial at the base's entrance but were kept about 40ft away by police who had set up barriers.
Colonel Thomas Johnson, a spokesman for the Marine Corps Combat Development Command at Quantico, said access to the memorial was denied because protest activity is not permitted on base grounds.
'We're pleased that people were able to express their First Amendment rights in a manner that did not infringe upon base property,' he said.
Earlier this month, Manning's confinement was the topic of widespread media coverage when chief State Department spokesman PJ Crowley resigned after criticising the handling of Pte Manning's detention.
Crowley's resignation prompted reporters to ask President Barack Obama about Manning's confinement, and he said he had been assured the conditions were appropriate.
President Obama said at the time he has been assured by Pentagon officials that the treatment of Bradley Manning has been 'meeting our basic standards'.
Earlier this year Amnesty International wrote to Defence Secretary Robert Gates to 'express concern' about Manning's conditions.
He spends 23 hours a day in a single cell, measuring just 72sq ft.
The human rights organisation said: 'He has no association or contact with other pre-trial detainees and he is allowed to exercise, alone, for just one hour a day, in a day-room or outside.
'The restrictions imposed in PFC Manning's case appear to be unnecessarily harsh and punitive, in view of the fact that he has no history of violence or disciplinary infractions and that he is a pre-trial detainee not yet convicted of any offence.'
Manning is being held under Prevention of Injury rules meaning he is 'deprived of sheets and a separate pillow'.
In a letter published earlier this month he refuted allegations that he is not being treated any differently from other prisoners.
He wrote that on January 18 'I was stripped of all clothing with the exception of my underwear. My prescription eyeglasses were taken away from me and I was forced to sit in essential blindness.'
He complained that he was treated differently to other prisoners, adding: 'I have been left to languish under the unduly harsh conditions of MAX Custody and [Prisoner of Interest] Status since my arrival on 29 July 2010.'
An 11-page letter released by Manning's lawyer detailed his routine. He starts with a morning inspection in which he has to stand naked outside his cell during roll-call.
Manning is not allowed any personal possessions in his cell, nor can he exercise there. He must answer verbally when his guards check on him every five minutes, so daytime sleep is impossible.
He can leave his cell for just an hour a day, when he is shackled and taken to a recreation room where he must walk around in circles.
He cannot read newspapers or watch television news. If he moves his head out of sight while sleeping, the guards will wake him up.
America has become a fascist state where the government tramples all over the peoples First Ammenment rights and use detention and torture at will.