FIFA World Cup 2018: Football mania grips Argentina as prisoners go on hunger strike

Buenos Aires: Inmates in an Argentine prison have begun a hunger strike to press authorities to repair the cable TV system so they can watch the World Cup.

“Cable television is an indispensable right for everyone deprived of their liberty,” according to a statement from nine inmates at Puerto Madryn jail some 1,300 kilometers (800 miles) south of Buenos Aires.

“It hasn’t been working for three days. And we have decided not to receive any food until the problem is resolved,” the prisoners wrote.

The nine inmates also filed a legal suit to assert their rights.

The cable system, located in a common area of the jail, was damaged recently and not repaired.

Argentina face Iceland on Saturday in Moscow in their first match of the World Cup.

The tournament kicks off when hosts Russia play Saudi Arabia on Thursday.