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Tag: Guantanamo Bay
David H Remes the 58 year old American lawyer recognized for his human rights work notable for volunteering to serve as a pro bono attorney for some of the captives held in extrajudicial detention in the US Guantanamo Bay detention camps, in Cuba has published an article titled ‘The Tragic Death of Adnan Latif: What is the Military Trying to Hide?’ on Firedoglake by Jeff Kaye. Remes states “…Truthout first reported, the US military began saying that my client Adnan Latif, a Yemeni at Guantanamo, who died in his cell on September 8, committed suicide by overdosing on medication he smuggled into his cell. On Saturday, December 15, the military further stated that acute pneumonia was a contributing factor in Adnan’s death. The government’s theory doesn’t stand up. It leaves urgent questions unanswered. …is it plausible that Adnan smuggled medication into his cell, much less kept and used it? Or did the military, perhaps, plant medication in his cell to facilitate his suicide? (Other detainees have reported such apparent suicide prompts.) Did Adnan actually commit suicide, or was he forced to take the medication? Was he tricked? Did he even die of overmedication? What medications was Adnan administered? In what doses and on what schedule? How were the medications administered—By injection? Orally? If orally, how were they administered—As pills? Capsules? Liquids? Solutions? Where were the medications administered—in Adnan’s cell? The hallway? A dispensary? Somewhere else? …the military disclosed, out of the blue, that acute pneumonia was a contributing factor in Adnan’s death. Why did the military wait to disclose that information? The military continues to withhold the other information in the autopsy report. Why the selective disclosure? And how could the military have discharged from the hospital a man with acute pneumonia? …The autopsy report undoubtedly answers many of these questions. Yet the military will not release the report. Why is the military stonewalling? What is the military trying to hide?”  Inspired by Jeff Kaye, Firedoglake ow.ly/jBeGb Image source Twitter ow.ly/jBeCh What is the military trying to hide? (April 26 2013)

David H Remes the 58 year old American lawyer recognized for his human rights work notable for volunteering to serve as a pro bono attorney for some of the captives held in extrajudicial detention in the US Guantanamo Bay detention camps, in Cuba has published an article titled ‘The Tragic Death of Adnan Latif: What is the Military Trying to Hide?’ on Firedoglake by Jeff Kaye. Remes states “…Truthout first reported, the US military began saying that my client Adnan Latif, a Yemeni at Guantanamo, who died in his cell on September 8, committed suicide by overdosing on medication he smuggled into his cell. On Saturday, December 15, the military further stated that acute pneumonia was a contributing factor in Adnan’s death. The government’s theory doesn’t stand up. It leaves urgent questions unanswered. …is it plausible that Adnan smuggled medication into his cell, much less kept and used it? Or did the military, perhaps, plant medication in his cell to facilitate his suicide? (Other detainees have reported such apparent suicide prompts.) Did Adnan actually commit suicide, or was he forced to take the medication? Was he tricked? Did he even die of overmedication? What medications was Adnan administered? In what doses and on what schedule? How were the medications administered—By injection? Orally? If orally, how were they administered—As pills? Capsules? Liquids? Solutions? Where were the medications administered—in Adnan’s cell? The hallway? A dispensary? Somewhere else? …the military disclosed, out of the blue, that acute pneumonia was a contributing factor in Adnan’s death. Why did the military wait to disclose that information? The military continues to withhold the other information in the autopsy report. Why the selective disclosure? And how could the military have discharged from the hospital a man with acute pneumonia? …The autopsy report undoubtedly answers many of these questions. Yet the military will not release the report. Why is the military stonewalling? What is the military trying to hide?”

 

Inspired by Jeff Kaye, Firedoglake ow.ly/jBeGb Image source Twitter ow.ly/jBeCh

 

 

Shaker Aamer the 44 year old Saudi Arabian citizen and the last British resident still held by the US in the Guantanamo Bay detention camp for 12 years. Aamer has never been charged never received a trial, his lawyer says he is "totally innocent", and has been cleared for release by both the Bush administration in 2007, and the Obama administration in 2009 but still remains in Guantanamo. He has been described as a charismatic leader who spoke up and fought for the rights of fellow prisoners, and some have speculated that this might be a reason for his continued detention. Aamer alleges that he has been subject to torture while in detention. Murtaza Hussain in The Guardian article titled ‘Obama promised to close Guantanamo. Instead, he's made it worse’ states “In his letters, Shaker Aamer appeals in desperation to his captors and the outside world: "Please … torture me in the old way. Here they destroy people mentally and physically without leaving marks." …the father of four …is just one of hundreds of detainees who remain imprisoned... Despite running on an explicit campaign promise to shut down the island prison which has become a symbol of the abuses of the "war on terror", President Obama has continued to preside over its operation. And by recent accounts, under his tenure, the conditions … have become markedly worse. …the majority of prisoners at Guantanamo began a hunger strike in protest of alleged mistreatment at the hands of guards at the facility. …In the words of his lawyer, Clive Stafford Smith: "I have known Shaker for some time; because he is so eloquent and outspoken about the injustices of Guantánamo, he is very definitely viewed as a threat by the US. Not in the sense of being an extremist, but in the sense of being someone who can rather eloquently criticize the nightmare that happened there." For those who have experienced and borne witness to beatings, torture, and even death at Guantánamo Bay over the past decade, Barack Obama has ensured that the prospect of freedom will remain as remote as ever.”  Inspired by Murtaza Hussain, The Guardian ow.ly/j4zQy Image source USA Govt ow.ly/j4zSI Please torture me in the old way (April 9 2013)

 

Shaker Aamer the 44 year old Saudi Arabian citizen and the last British resident still held by the US in the Guantanamo Bay detention camp for 12 years. Aamer has never been charged never received a trial, his lawyer says he is “totally innocent”, and has been cleared for release by both the Bush administration in 2007, and the Obama administration in 2009 but still remains in Guantanamo. He has been described as a charismatic leader who spoke up and fought for the rights of fellow prisoners, and some have speculated that this might be a reason for his continued detention. Aamer alleges that he has been subject to torture while in detention. Murtaza Hussain in The Guardian article titled ‘Obama promised to close Guantanamo. Instead, he’s made it worse’ states “In his letters, Shaker Aamer appeals in desperation to his captors and the outside world: “Please … torture me in the old way. Here they destroy people mentally and physically without leaving marks.” …the father of four …is just one of hundreds of detainees who remain imprisoned… Despite running on an explicit campaign promise to shut down the island prison which has become a symbol of the abuses of the “war on terror”, President Obama has continued to preside over its operation. And by recent accounts, under his tenure, the conditions … have become markedly worse. …the majority of prisoners at Guantanamo began a hunger strike in protest of alleged mistreatment at the hands of guards at the facility. …In the words of his lawyer, Clive Stafford Smith: “I have known Shaker for some time; because he is so eloquent and outspoken about the injustices of Guantánamo, he is very definitely viewed as a threat by the US. Not in the sense of being an extremist, but in the sense of being someone who can rather eloquently criticize the nightmare that happened there.” For those who have experienced and borne witness to beatings, torture, and even death at Guantánamo Bay over the past decade, Barack Obama has ensured that the prospect of freedom will remain as remote as ever.”

 

Inspired by Murtaza Hussain, The Guardian ow.ly/j4zQy Image source USA Govt ow.ly/j4zSI

Fayiz Mohammed Ahmed Al Kandari the 37 year old Kuwaiti citizen who has been detained in Guantanamo Bay for nearly 11 years on purely ‘hearsay evidence’ has been profiled in the New York Times. The Project Kuwaiti Freedom states “Al Kandari was a 27 year-old student who went to Afghanistan during his summer vacation in 2001 to render humanitarian aid. It was his belief that helping others might honor his grandmother, who had just died, and bring better health to his mother, who was suffering from cancer. After being captured by U.S. forces, he wrote in a message to his family that an American investigator had questioned him and found nothing against him, and he believed he would soon be freed. He wrote in a Red Cross letter, “If the construction of a mosque…or the digging of a well is the sin that makes me a detainee, then I willingly accept my detention.” Al Kandari according to his Lawyers, is as an example of a detainee for whom all the evidence against him is ‘hearsay evidence’. "Indeed, the evidence considered persuasive by the Tribunal is made up almost entirely of hearsay evidence recorded by unidentified individuals with no first hand knowledge of the events they describe." A tribunal report noted. Al Kandari’s lead attorney from the Office of Military Commissions, Lieutenant Colonel Barry D. Wingard states “Outside of the CSRT process, this type of evidence is more commonly referred to as 'rumor'” and that "Vague charges made it difficult to defend his client …There simply is no evidence other than he is a Muslim in Afghanistan at the wrong time, other than double and triple hearsay statements, something I have never seen as justification for incarceration…” Al Kandari is still subjected to harsh treatment and has been subjected to enhanced interrogation techniques including sleep deprivation, physical abuse, being placed in stress positions, sexual humiliation, and the use of extreme temperature, loud music and dogs.”  Inspired by Project Kuwaiti Freedom ow.ly/hYChK Image source New York Times ow.ly/hYCfz All evidence against him is hearsay evidence (March 10 2013)

 

Fayiz Mohammed Ahmed Al Kandari the 37 year old Kuwaiti citizen who has been detained in Guantanamo Bay for nearly 11 years on purely ‘hearsay evidence’ has been profiled in the New York Times. The Project Kuwaiti Freedom states “Al Kandari was a 27 year-old student who went to Afghanistan during his summer vacation in 2001 to render humanitarian aid. It was his belief that helping others might honor his grandmother, who had just died, and bring better health to his mother, who was suffering from cancer. After being captured by U.S. forces, he wrote in a message to his family that an American investigator had questioned him and found nothing against him, and he believed he would soon be freed. He wrote in a Red Cross letter, “If the construction of a mosque…or the digging of a well is the sin that makes me a detainee, then I willingly accept my detention.” Al Kandari according to his Lawyers, is as an example of a detainee for whom all the evidence against him is ‘hearsay evidence’. “Indeed, the evidence considered persuasive by the Tribunal is made up almost entirely of hearsay evidence recorded by unidentified individuals with no first hand knowledge of the events they describe.” A tribunal report noted. Al Kandari’s lead attorney from the Office of Military Commissions, Lieutenant Colonel Barry D. Wingard states “Outside of the CSRT process, this type of evidence is more commonly referred to as ‘rumor’” and that “Vague charges made it difficult to defend his client …There simply is no evidence other than he is a Muslim in Afghanistan at the wrong time, other than double and triple hearsay statements, something I have never seen as justification for incarceration…” Al Kandari is still subjected to harsh treatment and has been subjected to enhanced interrogation techniques including sleep deprivation, physical abuse, being placed in stress positions, sexual humiliation, and the use of extreme temperature, loud music and dogs.”

 

Inspired by Project Kuwaiti Freedom ow.ly/hYChK Image source New York Times ow.ly/hYCfz

Fawzi [Fouzi] Khaled Abdullah Fahad Al Odah the 35 year old Kuwaiti citizen and teacher held in the US Guantanamo Bay detainment camp in Cuba for the past 11 years without charge has been featured in the New York Times. Fawzi traveled to the Pakistan/Afghanistan border area in order to undertake charitable outreach work. Following the September 11, 2001 attacks, Fawzi fled Afghanistan, intending to return home to Kuwait, however having crossed the border into Pakistan he was captured by Pakistani bounty hunters who handed him along with eleven other Kuwaitis over to American authorities. The Kuwait Freedom Project established to seek the release of Fawzi and other Kuwaiti detainee’s reports that Fawzi spent his summers traveling in poor nations to educate less fortunate students, and along with his family have built libraries and wells in Africa. They’ve sponsored orphans in countries including Albania. Fawzi has not had any weapons training or experience, writing to his parents in 2002 stating, “Now I am detained by the American forces and investigations are still going on…I will be established as innocent soon, and then I will return back to you…” Fawzi’s father, Khalid Al-Odah, is the head of the Kuwaiti Family Committee, an organization formed by relatives of the detainees to advocate for their just treatment under the U.S. judicial system. The elder Al-Odah is a former member of the Kuwaiti Air Force, who trained with American servicemen in the United States and flew missions with them as an ally in the Persian Gulf War of 1991. … The U.S. Government contends that Fawzi’s true purpose in Afghanistan was to join the Taliban and al Qaeda referring to "additional incriminating evidence" discovered since his capture, however the nature of that evidence is redacted in the unclassified version…”  Inspired by Project Kuwaiti Freedom ow.ly/hMvRJ Image source Wikipedia ow.ly/hMvQa Captured by Pakistani bounty hunters (February 26 2013)

Fawzi [Fouzi] Khaled Abdullah Fahad Al Odah the 35 year old Kuwaiti citizen and teacher held in the US Guantanamo Bay detainment camp in Cuba for the past 11 years without charge has been featured in the New York Times. Fawzi traveled to the Pakistan/Afghanistan border area in order to undertake charitable outreach work. Following the September 11, 2001 attacks, Fawzi fled Afghanistan, intending to return home to Kuwait, however having crossed the border into Pakistan he was captured by Pakistani bounty hunters who handed him along with eleven other Kuwaitis over to American authorities. The Kuwait Freedom Project established to seek the release of Fawzi and other Kuwaiti detainee’s reports that Fawzi spent his summers traveling in poor nations to educate less fortunate students, and along with his family have built libraries and wells in Africa. They’ve sponsored orphans in countries including Albania. Fawzi has not had any weapons training or experience, writing to his parents in 2002 stating, “Now I am detained by the American forces and investigations are still going on…I will be established as innocent soon, and then I will return back to you…” Fawzi’s father, Khalid Al-Odah, is the head of the Kuwaiti Family Committee, an organization formed by relatives of the detainees to advocate for their just treatment under the U.S. judicial system. The elder Al-Odah is a former member of the Kuwaiti Air Force, who trained with American servicemen in the United States and flew missions with them as an ally in the Persian Gulf War of 1991. … The U.S. Government contends that Fawzi’s true purpose in Afghanistan was to join the Taliban and al Qaeda referring to “additional incriminating evidence” discovered since his capture, however the nature of that evidence is redacted in the unclassified version…”

 

Inspired by Project Kuwaiti Freedom ow.ly/hMvRJ Image source Wikipedia ow.ly/hMvQa

Kevin Bogucki the 48 year old American Naval Lieutenant Commander assigned to the Office of Military Commissions as a military defense lawyer with the Department of Defense, has requested to spend two nights in prison cells at Guantanamo Bay in order to understand conditions in which 9/11 accused are held. Chris McGreal in an article published in The Guardian titled ‘Lawyers for 9/11 suspects ask to be locked up at Guantanamo’ states “Lawyers defending Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, the alleged mastermind of the 9/11 attacks, and four of his co-accused have asked to be locked up for two nights in the Guantánamo prison in order to understand the conditions in which their clients are held. The US government has objected to the request on the grounds that it "could endanger the lives of those involved in such a visit" and instead offered an escorted tour. …Bogucki, likened the government's offer to the "jungle ride at Disneyland", where visitors think the mechanical elephant is real. He said he wanted a "full and meaningful inspection". None of the defence lawyers have ever seen inside the maximum security facility, Camp 7, where detainees captured and tortured by the CIA – including Mohammed, who was waterboarded 183 times – are held. …A government lawyer, Major Rob McGovern, said the authorities would agree to the lawyers visiting the prison but only on a two hour escorted trip without the detainees present. He derided the notion that defence lawyers would be walking around in their client's shoes for 48 hours. ... McGovern said it was to ensure the safety of the visiting attorneys. Defence lawyers said they did not feel in danger from their own clients.”  Inspired by Chris McGreal, The Guardian ow.ly/hLRIs Image source Facebook ow.ly/hLRGA Likened offer to the jungle ride at Disneyland (February 22 2013)

 

Kevin Bogucki the 48 year old American Naval Lieutenant Commander assigned to the Office of Military Commissions as a military defense lawyer with the Department of Defense, has requested to spend two nights in prison cells at Guantanamo Bay in order to understand conditions in which 9/11 accused are held. Chris McGreal in an article published in The Guardian titled ‘Lawyers for 9/11 suspects ask to be locked up at Guantanamo’ states “Lawyers defending Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, the alleged mastermind of the 9/11 attacks, and four of his co-accused have asked to be locked up for two nights in the Guantánamo prison in order to understand the conditions in which their clients are held. The US government has objected to the request on the grounds that it “could endanger the lives of those involved in such a visit” and instead offered an escorted tour. …Bogucki, likened the government’s offer to the “jungle ride at Disneyland”, where visitors think the mechanical elephant is real. He said he wanted a “full and meaningful inspection”. None of the defence lawyers have ever seen inside the maximum security facility, Camp 7, where detainees captured and tortured by the CIA – including Mohammed, who was waterboarded 183 times – are held. …A government lawyer, Major Rob McGovern, said the authorities would agree to the lawyers visiting the prison but only on a two hour escorted trip without the detainees present. He derided the notion that defence lawyers would be walking around in their client’s shoes for 48 hours. … McGovern said it was to ensure the safety of the visiting attorneys. Defence lawyers said they did not feel in danger from their own clients.”

 

Inspired by Chris McGreal, The Guardian ow.ly/hLRIs Image source Facebook ow.ly/hLRGA

Chronicle of a death foretold (October 7 2012) Chronicle of a death foretold (October 7 2012)

Adnan Farhan Abdul Latif the 32 year old Yemini citizen detained for over 10 years at the American naval base at Guantanamo Bay has died in custody without having ever been charged with a crime. Murtaza Hussain has published an article on Aljazeera titled ‘Chronicle of a death foretold’ in which he states “The cause of his death has been recorded as unknown and may never truly be known, but Latif had long suffered from feelings of extreme depression during his time in jail, having made several suicide attempts in the previous years. …Latif was initially captured by Pakistani bounty hunters in the aftermath of the 9/11 attacks when a mixture of confusion and desire for vengeance resulted in the effective labeling of any military age Arab males found in Afghanistan and Pakistan as potential terrorists. He had been receiving medical care in Amman, Jordan for chronic injuries he had received from a car crash in Yemen that had fractured his skull and caused permanent damage to his hearing. Lured to Pakistan by the promise of cheap healthcare, once the war started he ended up caught in the dragnet of opportunistic bounty hunters who detained him, proclaimed him a terrorist and handed him over to the US military in neighboring Afghanistan …in order to collect large cash incentives from the US military for their handover. No evidence was ever found connecting him to terrorism or violent militancy of any kind… Indeed, when he was apprehended he was found not to be in possession of weapons or extremist literature of any kind – what he had with him were copies of his medical records.”

 

Inspired by Aljazeera ow.ly/e0giJ image source JTF-GTMO ow.ly/e0gci

Barry Wingard the 41 year old US Air Force Lieutenant Colonel of 28 years service and a Judge Advocate General (JAG) has written a damning condemnation of the dual US legal systems. In an Aljazeera article, Wingard states “Why does the US assert its right to hold human beings for life without trial in its never-ending battle against “terror”? The only justification that I can see is “because it can”…the most visible example of “American justice” has been the confinement of Muslims at Guantanamo Bay without a trial of any kind… For 10 years, the US has clearly demonstrated it applies one set of legal rules to Americans and another to non-Americans. The first set respects due process, the rule of law, individual rights and the concept of innocent until proven guilty. Unfortunately, the second set involves enhanced interrogation, indefinite detention and a presumption of guilt without any opportunity to prove innocence.”

 

Inspired by Barry Wingard http://ow.ly/8Szjl image source http://ow.ly/

Adel Al-Gazzar the 56 year old Egyptian formerly held for eight years by the US in the Cuban Guantanamo Bay detainment camp, and imprisoned in Egypt on his return, has Katie Taylor a project officer with Reprieve, calling for Ad-Gazzar’s amnesty. Al-Gazzar had a leg amputated as a result of a US bombing raid in Afghanistan on what he claims was a humanitarian visit to provide aid for the Saudi Red Crescent, he managed to return to Pakistan for treatment until sold to US security agents for a bounty. He was subsequently moved to Guantanamo Bay and been imprisoned for the past decade. Al-Gazzar is currently held by the Egyptians for “attempting to overthrow former President Hosni Mubarak’s regime … widely condemned as an attempt by Mubarak to suppress his Islamist opponents.” Taylor states that “Adel has already suffered far too much in one lifetime. He has been unjustly detained for nearly a decade, and as a result, has suffered permanent injury and chronic health problems and his family now stands on the edge of poverty.”

 

Inspired by Katie Taylor http://ow.ly/7VoPa image source eurasiareview http://ow.ly/7VoVy

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