NEWS:
Guantánamo Bay:
In early October, an important court case was held in a US federal court
in Washington on the legality of the force-feeding regime for hunger-striking
prisoners at Guantánamo Bay. Just days before the hearing before the court in
which lawyers for hunger-striking Syrian prisoner Abu Wa’el Dhiab and lawyers
for the US government presented their arguments, Judge Gladys
Kessler rejected a plea by the US government to have the hearing held in secret
on the grounds of national security. She stated in a written ruling that “With such a longstanding and ongoing public interest at stake, it
would be particularly egregious to bar the public from observing the
credibility of live witnesses, the substance of their testimony, whether proper
procedures are being followed, and whether the court is treating all
participants fairly”
The judge also ordered that 20 videotapes showing the force-feeding
procedure being administered to prisoners be released by the US military. The military
only admitted the existence of the tapes earlier in these proceedings but has
refused to allow the court to see them.
The hearing started on 6 October, during which his lawyers argued that
the force-feeding is a form of torture and not a medical procedure, as claimed
by the US administration. They also challenged the violent way in which
prisoners are taken and prepared for force-feeding. Although several sessions
of the 3-day hearing were held in closed court, important information about hunger
strikes at Guantánamo Bay has emerged, such as the fact that six prisoners were
on permanent hunger strike between 2007 and the start of the current hunger
strike in February 2013, or even longer.
The judge gave the US military until 17 October to release videotapes,
however just days before that, it was rumoured that the government might appeal
this decision and instead a 30-day extension was given to release the tapes.
Later in October, news organisations added to the pressure for the tapes
to be released as did Democrat congressmen Raul
Grijalva and Keith Ellison in a letter to Barack Obama calling the secrecy
surrounding the videotapes “contrary to American laws or values” and stating
that “The facts pertaining to these practices at Guantánamo should be available
to members of Congress”.
Dhiab was cleared for released in 2009, has never been charged or tried,
and is currently awaiting release to Uruguay, as one of six prisoners the country’s
government has agreed to accept.
In the military commission case of Saudi Abd Al-Nashiri, a request made
in August for an MRI brain scan to see if he has organic brain damage was
turned down by Judge Spath on the basis that he felt the medical care at Guantánamo
is adequate and a proper administrative request had not been made by his
lawyers. He did not mention that the requisite medical equipment was not
available at the base.
With new briefs filed by both sides in the case, the next oral hearing in the case will
be held on 13 November.
Estonia has agreed to resettle one of the 79 prisoners who have been
cleared for release but cannot return home. It did not say which prisoner it
would accept and in the past has said it would not take Guantánamo prisoners
On 22 October, the appeal case of Ali Hamza Al-Bahlul, currently serving
a life sentence at Guantánamo Bay, was heard by a panel of 3 judges at the DC
Circuit Court after it was sent back there following a decision overturning two
of his convictions, for material support of terrorism and solicitation in July, for
consideration on the outstanding issue of conspiracy. In the original appeal
hearing, all three convictions were overturned but the US government was
granted a rehearing en banc (by all 7 judges at the court). This panel
sent back four issues related to conspiracy to the original panel of judges to
consider. During the oral hearing, lawyers for Al-Bahlul argued that the military
commission procedure was unconstitutional and discriminatory. If the arguments
put forward by his lawyers are accepted, and the conspiracy charge overturned,
it would also overturn other convictions and end pending trials, unless
appealed at the Supreme Court. A decision is expected in the next few months.
The periodic review board has cleared one Saudi prisoner for release and
ordered the continuing detention of another Saudi prisoner. Muhammad Abd Al-Rahman Awn Al-Shamrani, who refused to take part in
his review in May, is still considered a risk and was associated with Al Qaeda
and the Taliban in Saudi Arabia and Afghanistan. A second man, Muhammad Murdi
Issa al-Zahrani, was cleared for transfer. Although several prisoners have been
cleared for transfer since the process restarted over the past year or so none
of those cleared have been transferred anywhere.
In a court case originally brought against the Canadian government in
2004 when he was still held at Guantánamo Bay, for the Canadian government’s
complicity in his abuse, a federal judge in Canada has ruled that Omar Khadr
can widen the scope of his original case, suing the Canadian government for $20
million and claim that the Canadian government conspired with the US.
The government has asked for the claims in the case, which was reopened
by his lawyers last year, to be dismissed but the judges asked for the new
claims to be rewritten rather than rejected. He stated “Whether Canada conspired with foreign officials to violate the
fundamental rights of a citizen is not a trivial matter” and that whether or
not the conspiracy charge could stand was a matter for the trial judge to
decide. He awarded costs in the case to Khadr’s lawyers as the Canadian
government had “"considerably increased the costs and delay" of the
action by opposing the lawsuit amendments, almost all of which he allowed.”
Although banned from speaking to the media, on 28 October, a week after
an attack on a Canadian soldier and proposals to push through strict new
security laws by the Canadian government in response, Omar Khadr had his first
opportunity to address Canadians in his own words in an op-ed published in the Ottawa
Citizen entitled “Khadr: Misguided security laws take a human toll”. In an
intelligent and thoughtful article, Khadr states “I
will not give up. I have a fundamental right to redress for what I have
experienced. But this isn’t just about me. I want accountability to ensure others
will be spared the torment I have been through; and the suffering I continue to
endure.”
Extraordinary Rendition:
The trial of Abu Anas Al-Libi, who was kidnapped in Libya a year ago and
rendered to the US, was due to start in early November. In early October,
Al-Libi asked the judge to suppress statements he made between the time he was
kidnapped and when he later appeared in the US on that basis that he feels that
those statements were coerced. He was not given legal representation, did not
know where he was being held and thought he was going to be taken to Guantánamo
Bay. As a result, he had signed a form waiving his legal rights, which he has
since retracted. He had been told at the time that he would be held and
interrogated on the US military ship he was aboard for over four months. Although
he does not claim to have been physically tortured, he was under great
psychological pressure.
He pleaded not guilty to charges of conspiracy in the bombing of two US
embassies in Africa in 1998, which killed over 200 people. The hearing has now
been put back until January 2015 to give defence lawyers additional time to
prepare, including evidence from the UK. Al-Libi’s co-defendant Khaled
al-Fawwaz was extradited from the UK in October 2012. A third defendant in the
case, Adel Abdul Bary, also extradited from the UK in 2012, pleaded guilty in September
and faces a sentence of 25 years.
Poland has lodged an appeal against a ruling in July made by the
European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg, which found the country complicit
in the CIA’s extraordinary rendition programme, by hosting a torture facility. Prisoners
held there included current Guantánamo prisoners Abu Zubaydah and Abd
Al-Nashiri. The appeal is reported to be based on procedural grounds.
A Russian prisoner held at Bagram since 2009, known only as “Irek Hamidullan”,
has been taken to the US where he is to face a terrorism trial on unspecified
charges. He is alleged to have been involved in attacks on Americans prior to
his capture. This is the first time a prisoner held in Afghanistan is being
taken to the US. He is among a group of 13 foreign nationals known to be held
by the US at the Parwan facility at Bagram without charge or trial. In 2015,
the US must hand over control of prison facilities to the Afghan authorities.
On 30 October, the Court of Appeal ruled that Abdul Hakim
Belhaj and his wife, who were rendered to Libya in 2004 from SE Asia with the assistance
of the intelligence services, can sue the UK government. He brought a case against
former Foreign Secretary Jack Straw, who had previously denied any knowledge of
his case, and MI6 for complicity in their rendition, which came to light in
documents found in a government building in Tripoli following the Arab Spring
there in 2011. The High Court had ruled the case could not be heard as it could
damage foreign relationships with the US. However, the appeal court judges said
a court should hear them. Jack Straw and the government have been given leave
to appeal to the Supreme Court.
LGC Activities:
The October “Shut
Guantánamo!” demonstration was attended by 7 people. The LGC is grateful to London
Catholic Worker for joining us at this demonstration. The November demonstration
will be at 12-1pm outside the US Embassy and 1.15-2.15pm outside Speaker’s Corner,
Marble Arch on Thursday 6th November: https://www.facebook.com/events/558851547591991/
Thanks to
Voices for Creative Non-Violence UK for allowing Val Brown to hold a stall to
raise awareness about the plight of Guantánamo prisoners at the conference “Afghanistan
– The Forgotten War: Britain’s Legacy” on Saturday 11th October. Speakers
at the conference focused on Britain’s military legacy and ongoing involvement,
including the environmental impact of war and weapons, the ongoing lethal use
of drones and the impact financially and on British armed forces. A report of
the interesting and successful conference can be read here: http://onesmallwindow.wordpress.com/2014/10/12/britains-legacy-the-forgotten-war-in-afghanistan/
On 16 October, Aisha
Maniar joined John Rees on the Islam Channel’s “The Report” news programme to
talk about the ongoing hunger strike at Guantánamo Bay and the struggle to
release videotapes showing prisoners being force-fed.
Many thanks to
students from Queen Mary University of London’s Amnesty Society for inviting us
on 21 October to take part in a talk on torture alongside a speaker from
Amnesty International UK’s current ongoing campaign on the theme. Aisha Maniar
spoke to around 50 students about the history of Guantánamo, now almost in its
13th year of operation, as well as the truth and lies surrounding
the prisoners, the legality of Guantánamo detention and the use of torture. Short
workshops were also held to discuss some of the issues raised.
On 6th November,
the LGC will hold a planning meeting for our January anniversary demonstration
at 6:30pm in the café in Friend’s House, Euston Road (opposite Euston station).
We are currently in the process of planning its action to mark the 13th
anniversary of Guantanamo opening in January 2015 and as usual WE need YOUR
help to make it happen. We are holding a meeting on 6 November. Please get in
touch or join us if you’d like to be involved.
