Tag: guantanamo

Court Won’t Rule on Deaths at Guantánamo

A federal district court has thrown out the case of two men who died in U.S. custody at Guantánamo Bay in 2006 and who are seeking to hold U.S. government officials responsible for the men’s torture, arbitrary detention and ultimate deaths. The families of the dead men claimed that it was a violation of due … Continue reading “Court Won’t Rule on Deaths at Guantánamo”

Swiss Take Two Guantánamo Uighurs, Solve Obama’s Problem

Congratulations to the Swiss Canton of Jura, which recently accepted the asylum claims of two Uighur prisoners at Guantánamo, and to the Swiss federal government for agreeing to accept Jura’s decision on Wednesday.  The two men in question — Arkin Mahmud, 45, and his brother Bahtiyar Mahnut, 32 — were seized with 20 other Uighurs … Continue reading “Swiss Take Two Guantánamo Uighurs, Solve Obama’s Problem”

JAG Officer: Indefinite Detention ‘Defies Common Sense’

U.S. President Barack Obama’s decision to detain 47 of the just-under 200 remaining prisoners at Guantánamo without trial indefinitely is drawing scorn from legal experts and human rights advocates, who charge that the government simply does not have enough evidence to convict the detainees it says cannot be tried but are "too dangerous to release." … Continue reading “JAG Officer: Indefinite Detention ‘Defies Common Sense’”

Remembering ‘Suicides’ in the Rotunda

In the absence of an intact corpse, families often gather for memorial services rather than funerals. The families of Salah Ahmed al-Salami, Mani Shaman al-Utaybi, and Yasser Talal al-Zahrani – three Guantánamo prisoners whose earlier purported suicides were declared "asymmetrical warfare" by the Bush Justice Department – received Salah’s, Mani’s, and Yasser’s broken and lifeless … Continue reading “Remembering ‘Suicides’ in the Rotunda”

Whistleblower Challenges Guantánamo ‘Suicides’

Is the administration of President Barack Obama concealing evidence suggesting that three suicides at Guantánamo Bay were not suicides at all? That is a question human rights groups, legal experts and national security specialists are pondering on the heels of an article in Harper’s Magazine by Scott Horton presenting whistleblower testimony suggesting that the three … Continue reading “Whistleblower Challenges Guantánamo ‘Suicides’”

British Govt. to Release Documents on Gitmo Case

After months of denial, the British government has agreed to release secret documents that lawyers say could prove that MI5 agents were present during the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency’s torture of a British resident held by the U.S. government for eight years. Shaker Aamer, a prisoner at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, claims he was tortured during … Continue reading “British Govt. to Release Documents on Gitmo Case”

World’s Most Controversial Prison Enters Ninth Year

As the world marked the beginning of the ninth year of detention at the U.S. Navy base at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, on Monday, a leading legal advocacy group filed suit against the Library of Congress for firing Guantanamo’s former chief prosecutor for writing articles criticizing the use of military commissions to try suspected terrorists. Col. … Continue reading “World’s Most Controversial Prison Enters Ninth Year”

Afghan Prisoners Challenge Indefinite Detention

While the unsuccessful attempt to bring down a Detroit-bound airliner on Christmas Day captured the headlines and put major political roadblocks in the path of prisoner release from Guantanamo Bay, the courts – far more quietly – continued to play a major role in influencing the detention issue. That influence was demonstrated by two cases … Continue reading “Afghan Prisoners Challenge Indefinite Detention”