Guantánamo Bay
The government stipend for rent and subsistence of former
Guantánamo prisoners, all refugees, sent to Uruguay in 2014, has been renewed
for a fifth year. The prisoners have cost the Uruguayan state $709,000 over the
past four years. A state spokesperson said it would not be renewed again. Of
the six sent to the country in 2014, 4 remain: Syrian refugee Jihad Diyab used
a false passport to travel to Turkey to reunite with his family, and from where
they have possibly been returned to Syria along with other Syrian refugees.
Palestinian Mohammed
Tahamatan has moved to Argentina and is unlikely to return to Uruguay. Of the
four remaining former prisoners, Ahmed Ahjam, a Syrian refugee, has started a
business selling Syrian sweets and the others have had small jobs and attended
training courses but with no prospect of longer-term or full-time employment.
On 25
March, Alberta judge Mary Moreau ruled that Omar Khadr, former Canadian
prisoner, had served his US prison sentence imposed by the Guantánamo military
tribunal and ruled him free of any bail or further conditions. Khadr was
released to Canada in 2012 and released on bail in 2015 pending his appeal of
his conviction in the US. However, that has yet to start and is likely to take
many years. Had he remained in prison, his sentence would have expired in
October 2018. Thus his lawyers petitioned the court to consider Khadr to be in
custody for one further day and then rule him to have served his sentence,
which the judge did, and then allowed him to walk free. Although his
restrictions have been reduced over the past few years, restrictions remained
on his ability to obtain a passport, travel abroad and within Canada and
communication with his sister. The ruling should allow him to get on with his
life normally while pursuing his US appeal.
Lawyer of Indonesian prisoner Hambali, real name Encep Nurjaman, Major
James Valentine has stated that in spite of the US laying formal charges
against him last year, first initiated under the Obama administration, the US
government is unlikely to take the case to court “because it "can never
reveal to the world" how brutally he was tortured”. Instead, he is asking
the Indonesian government to use its powers to charge Hambali for offences he is
alleged to have committed there and to have him returned to the country to
stand trial. His family are also calling for his return to Indonesia, even if
it means further imprisonment. Other defendants in the 2003 Bali bombing, which
he is accused of involvement in, have already been tried, convicted and
executed in Indonesia. The Obama administration had previously sought to have
him extradited to Malaysia as he would also face the death penalty there. After
he was kidnapped and extraordinarily rendered, he was held in secret CIA
prisons where he was brutally tortured – his lawyer says he shows the physical
effects of this – before being sent to Guantánamo where he is held in a
top-secret block with little access to anyone else. Although the offences for
which the US would like to try Hambali took place in Indonesia, the Indonesian
government has shown no interest in prosecuting him.
Former Mauritanian prisoner Mohamedou Ould Slahi has been denied a
passport by the Mauritanian government to travel abroad and receive medical
treatment. Upon release three years ago, he was told that he could apply for a
passport after two years but this has been denied. His petition to the
Mauritanian government has been supported by hundreds of writers and authors
worldwide. Many former prisoners face restrictions on their ability to obtain a
passport and travel.
The latest pre-trial hearing in the case of Abdul Hadi Al-Iraqi
lasted two hours after his counsel requested a meeting with him, a rare event
due to his poor health and his needing days to recover after being moved to the
courthouse. At the start of the hearing Al-Iraqi told the judge that he would
not be able to follow the proceedings as his medication was making him drowsy,
but the judge decided to continue. However, his lead defense counsel, Susan
Hensler, suffered severe dehydration and had to be treated at the base
hospital. Hearings in his case will not resume now until July.
In the case of five men accused of involvement in attacks on New
York in September 2001, pre-trial hearings continued in late March. These focused
on the details of recorded phone calls allegedly involving Khalid Shaikh
Mohammad and three of his co-defendants in the months before the attacks which
the US government claims involved coded communication on plans for the attacks.
The issue was raised by James Connell, lead counsel for Ammar Al-Baluchi, as
part of his challenge of “a protective order – what he called a “gag order” –
preventing the defense teams from making any inquiries, including in closed
court sessions, that might touch upon the sources and methods of how the
recordings were obtained.” Connell also argued that the “court’s acceptance of
the government summary without cross examination of government personnel with
knowledge of the “how” and the “when” of the recordings would violate his
client’s constitutional right to confront witnesses.” Other lawyers refused to
take part in these pre-trial hearings over issues over interference by the FBI
through the interrogation of a paralegal about the defence teams and a possible
conflict of interest. Much of the hearings were held in closed session.
Extraordinary Rendition:
The inquiry into the use of Scottish airports for CIA torture
flights has finally ended after more than five years. A police inquiry was
ordered in 2013. As part of the investigation Scottish police asked to see the
full 6000-page 2014 Senate Intelligence Committee report into extraordinary
rendition. This request was never granted. Scottish airports were used for
stopovers and refuelling on up to a dozen occasions at least. The outcome of
the inquiry could see prosecutions of CIA officials.
LGC Activities:
The March Shut Guantánamo! demo took place on 7 March. The April
demonstration will be at 12-2pm on Thursday 4 April outside the US Embassy, 33
Nine Elms Lane, SW11 7US. Further details here: https://www.facebook.com/events/1001212076743659/
