British residents:
On 25 September, the British government announced that it had been
informed by the US that the last remaining British resident Shaker Aamer, a
Saudi national whose British wife and four children live in south London, has
been cleared for release to the UK. Previously he had only been cleared for
release to Saudi Arabia, a country he does not want to return to. The British
government has pressed for his release to the UK since 2007, after he was cleared
for release by the US for the first time. Following clearance by multiple
agencies, it is estimated that he should be released to his family in the UK by
25 October. His family have called for his release not to be delayed. Prime
Minister David Cameron welcomed this news and has called for Guantánamo to
close.
Held at Guantánamo since February 2002, Shaker Aamer has never been
charged or tried.
NEWS:
Guantánamo Bay:
Prior to the
summer recess, in July, Barack Obama announced that he would have a plan to
submit to Congress in early September for the closure of Guantánamo before the
end of his final term as president in early 2017. The plan never transpired and
the media remained silent.
On the other
hand, in early September, Defense Secretary Ashton Carter told the US navy that
the plan to close Guantánamo is by transferring prisoners who have not been
cleared for release to military prisons on the mainland. He also said that
there is no plan to evacuate the base at Guantánamo and return it to Cuba.
In early
September, a number of possible locations – existing military prisons and land
owned by the military to construct such a facility – were visited. Congress is
likely to object to any transfers of prisoners to the US mainland and senators
for the states visited have already expressed their objections. The LGC objects
to any plans to franchise Guantánamo and anything short of the safe release of
all the prisoners held there almost wholly without charge or trial. The LGC
also believes this to be a stalling tactic as there is no plan, given that the
Obama government is fully aware that Congress will pose a block to such
“plans”. Furthermore, transfer to the US mainland is unlikely to confer any new
constitutional rights on the prisoners and they may be held in worse
conditions.
Showing that
there are no actual plans to close Guantánamo or release all the prisoners, a
contract has been put out for tender by the government until 2025 to provide
prosthetics for 5 prisoners who need them.
On 11 September,
Omar Khadr had a bail hearing to have the conditions relaxed and so that he may
be able to visit his family in Toronto, especially as his grandmother is ill. A
number of conditions were lifted on the same day to allow him to attend night
school and early morning prayers. On 18 September, the same judge also ruled to
lift most of his bail conditions, as he had been compliant since his release in
May this year but kept a few in place. He is allowed to visit his family before
the end of this year provided he is accompanied by one of his lawyers.
On 25 September,
Omar Khadr joined the audience at a screening of a new documentary about his life, Guantánamo’s Child, at the Calgary International Film Festival in
Canada. After the showing, he answered questions from the public along with his
lawyer Dennis Edney and the filmmaker journalist Michelle Shepherd.
Following an
investigation into the risk of cancer at the war court at Guantánamo Bay, which
has already caused some casualties and at least seven illnesses in legal staff,
the US navy has concluded that there is no need for a full investigation and
that air samples and other tests had shown there is no major risk.
Three prisoners
were cleared for release by the prisoner review board this month. Libyan
prisoner Omar Khalif was cleared for release on health grounds; he is
considered too ill to pose a threat. He is an amputee with no right leg below
the knee, is blind in one eye and has glaucoma as well as suffering from a
psychiatric condition.
The last Kuwaiti prisoner Fayiz Al-Kandari, who had his bid for release turned down by
the board last year, has finally been cleared too.
Saudi prisoner
Mohammed Shimrani, one of the first to arrive at Guantánamo was also cleared
for release following a review. He had previously boycotted his review hearing
in protest at genital searches by guards.
There are 29
prisoners who are ‘forever’ prisoner, who are subject to indefinite detention.
53 prisoners have been cleared for release.
There are
currently 114 prisoners at Guantánamo Bay. The first transfer in over 3 months
was made on 16 September when Moroccan prisoner Younes Chekkouri was returned
to his country of origin. However, he remains detained there; Chekkouri was
held incommunicado for two days after which the authorities stated that he was
being held on remand at the notorious Salé prison pending an investigation into
terrorism-related charges. He was never charged or tried at Guantánamo.
Following a meeting with his Moroccan lawyer, it emerged that the US had blindfolded
and shackled him on his return journey to Morocco, traumatising him. He has,
however, been allowed to meet his family for the first time in 14 years. His
lawyers believe that the US has confidential information which if released to
Morocco could see Chekkouri released.
On 22 September,
Saudi prisoner Abdul Shalabi was returned to Saudi Arabia where he will be
enrolled in a rehabilitation programme. An alleged close associate of Osama Bin
Laden, he was never tried for any offences. He is reported to have been on
hunger strike since 2005.
Extraordinary Rendition:
According to lawyers
of rendition victim and current Guantánamo prisoner Abu Zubaydah, the Senate
Torture Report, a redacted part of which was published in December 2014,
provides evidence that Lithuania hosted a CIA torture prison. The report also
makes hundreds of references to Abu Zubaydah’s case. He was one of the parties
who won a case against Poland for torture at the European Court of Human Rights
earlier this year. A similar case is pending against Lithuania, which reopened
an inconclusive investigation it had earlier closed, claiming there was no
evidence.
Lawyers for one of the
9/11 defendants Mustafa Al-Hawsawi have also filed a case with prosecutors in
Lithuania to find out more about what happened at alleged torture sites in the
country.
Police in Canada have
brought charges against a Syrian colonel, Georges Salloum, for his role in the
torture of Canadian-Syrian citizen Maher Arar who was rendered to Syria in 2002
and was tortured and held illegally in prisons there. An Interpol notice for Salloum’s
arrest has gone out. Arar has sought his arrest and prosecution since 2005. In
2007, he received CA$10,000,000 from the Canadian government and has also had
an official apology from Prime Minister Stephen Harper. Canada was complicit in
his torture. The US has never apologised.
LGC Activities:
The London Guantánamo
Campaign, along with Free Omar Khadr Now, held a Twitter storm on 8 September
when Barack Obama’s plan to close Guantánamo failed to materialise. Encouraged by
the success of this action, the LGC has held two other #GitmObama Twitter
storms since then. Tweets that can be used during the action with this hashtag
are provided in a pastebin (click on it and copy & paste the tweets) and
everyone everywhere (who is on Twitter) is welcome to join in. The next Twitter
storm will be on Monday 5 October at 9pm BST/ 4pm EST / 1pm PST. Please check
our Twitter @shutguantanamo for further details and the pastebin to take part.
