Tanzania’s jailed opposition leader ends hunger strike after meeting with his brother

NAIROBI, Kenya -- Tanzania’s jailed opposition leader Tundu Lissu ended a brief hunger strike Tuesday after prison authorities allowed him to meet privately with his younger brother, his lead lawyer said.Lissu, who survived being shot 16 times in a 2017 assassination attempt and has spent periods in exile citing threats to his life, leads Tanzania’s main opposition party, Chadema. He faces a treason charge carrying a possible death sentence and has been detained for more than 18 months, with a final judgment scheduled for Nov. 6.His lead lawyer, Rugemeleza Nshala, told The Associated Press by telephone that Lissu had planned to begin the strike Monday to protest restrictions on court-ordered confidential legal consultations. He postponed it after prison authorities promised private access.When those consultations failed to take place Monday, Lissu began refusing food Tuesday morning, Nshala said.“Lissu did not take his tea, breakfast or lunch,” Nshala said. He ended the strike after lunchtime following the private meeting with his brother.Prison authorities and the government had issued no public statements on the hunger strike.Nshala said Saturday that prison authorities had, on s...