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User:Geo Swan/Bismullah (Guantanamo detainee 968)

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Geo Swan/Bismullah
Arrested2003-02-12
Helmand
American Forces
Released2009-01-17
Afghanistan
CitizenshipAfghanistan
Detained at Guantanamo
ISN968
Charge(s)No charge NLEC
StatusRepatriated

Haji Bismullah is a citizen of Afghanistan who was held in extrajudicial detention in the United States's Guantanamo Bay detention camps, in Cuba.[1] His Guantanamo Internment Serial Number was 968. American intelligence analysts estimate Bismullah was born in 1979 and was from Musa Qala, Afghanistan.

Unusual release

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Bismullah's release was unusual. Every Guantanamo captive was supposed to be able to call upon witnesses during the Combatant Status Review Tribunal the United States Supreme Court forced the DoD to convene for the 588 individuals remaining in Guantanamo in 2004, in Rasul v. Bush. When witnesses were not also being held in Guantanamo US officials were supposed to contact them, and help them draft a witness statement. However, during every single Tribunal where an off-Island witness was requested, and their Tribunal President ruled their witness was relevant, they were also informed that US officials could not locate the witness, so their Tribunal President had ruled them unavailable. Several individuals, including Bismullah, had testified that they were loyal officials of the Hamid Karzai government, and had requested a witness statement from Abdulrahim Wardak, who was, at the time the Deputy Minister of Defense. Tribunal Presidents would claim that US officials could not locate witnesses, even when they were members of Hamid Karzai's cabinet. In March 2005, a few months after the CSR Tribunals had concluded, the DoD published a list of 38 individuals who had been determined to have been incorrectly classified as "enemy combatants", and these men were scheduled for release. Bismullah was the 39th individual whose release was due to his CSR Tribunal. In early January of 2009, in the dying days of the Bush administration, the DoD announced that they were going to credit the witness statements of his brothers -- after one of his brothers was elected to sit in the Wolesi Jirga, the lower house of Afghanistan's national assembly. He was repatriated on January 17, 2009.[2]

Combatant Status Review Tribunal

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Initially the Bush administration asserted that they could withhold all the protections of the Geneva Conventions to captives from the war on terror.[3] This policy was challenged before the Judicial branch. Critics argued that the USA could not evade its obligation to conduct competent tribunals to determine whether captives are, or are not, entitled to the protections of prisoner of war status.

Subsequently the Department of Defense instituted the Combatant Status Review Tribunals. The Tribunals, however, were not authorized to determine whether the captives were lawful combatants -- rather they were merely empowered to make a recommendation as to whether the captive had previously been correctly determined to match the Bush administration's definition of an enemy combatant.

Summary of Evidence memo

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A Summary of Evidence memo was prepared for Bismullah's Combatant Status Review Tribunal, on 26 October 2004. [4] The memo listed the following allegations against him:

a. The detainee is a member of the Taliban:
  1. The detainee and his wife have been identified as members of the Taliban.
  2. The detainee acted on behalf of leaders of Fidayan Islam.
  3. Fidayan Islam is a terrorist organization in Afghanistan targeting United States and Coalition forces.
  4. The detainee was directed to identify' and kill local Afghanis who were assisting U.S. forces.
  5. The detainee was detained by American forces in Gereshk Village, Baghram District, which is located in Helmand Province, Afghanistan.
b. The detainee directly supported hostilities in aid of enemy armed forces.
  1. The Detainee provided information concerning movements of U.S. forces in Helmand Province of Afghanistan to insurgent operatives opposed to U.S. forces.

Transcript

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Bismullah chose to participate in his Combatant Status Review Tribunal.[5] On March 3, 2006, in response to a court order from Jed Rakoff the Department of Defense published a seven page summarized transcript from his Combatant Status Review Tribunal.[6]

Administrative Review Board hearing

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Hearing room where Guantanamo captive's annual Administrative Review Board hearings convened for captives whose Combatant Status Review Tribunal had already determined they were an "enemy combatant".[7]

Detainees who were determined to have been properly classified as "enemy combatants" were scheduled to have their dossier reviewed at annual Administrative Review Board hearings. The Administrative Review Boards weren't authorized to review whether a detainee qualified for POW status, and they weren't authorized to review whether a detainee should have been classified as an "enemy combatant".

They were authorized to consider whether a detainee should continue to be detained by the United States, because they continued to pose a threat—or whether they could safely be repatriated to the custody of their home country, or whether they could be set free.

First annual Administrative Review Board

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A Summary of Evidence memo was prepared for Bismullah's first annual Administrative Review Board, on 12 October 2005.[8] The memo listed eighteen factors favoring continued detention. The memo listed three factors favoring release or transfer.

The following primary factors favor continued detention

a. Commitment
The detainee has been a Taliban member for six years.
b. Connections/Associations
  1. The detainee was a Deputy Commander for Rozei Khan, a Taliban Commander, during his time of command in combat.
  2. The detainee worked for Abdul Wahed on the terrorist team.
  3. The 40-man unit is part of the Taliban and supported by al Qaida. The supreme commander of the unit is Haji Raes Abdul Wahed.
  4. The detainee provided some tactical information for the 40-man unit and used a short-range radio and long-range satellite telephone to communicate.
  5. In response to United States’ requests for information against Fidayan Islam, Fidayan Islam leaders directed the detainee to find and kill the local Afghans that are helping the Americans.
  6. Fidayan Islam is the combined effort of Hezb-e-Islami and active Taliban.
  7. The detainee traveled the streets of Gereshk at night asking questions about the Americans and those who spoke to them. The detainee was hoping that a show of force would scare people into providing information that would lead to those helping United States Forces.
  8. The detainee was an associate of Dost Mohammed. Dost Mohammed had planned a rocket attack against the United States military base in Deh Rawhud, Afghanistan in mid-August 2002.
c. Other Relevant Data
  1. As Chief of Transportation, the detainee was issued a permit allowing him to carry a driver’s license, use a mobile phone and weapon. The detainee was also given a vehicle and two weapons.
  2. During August 2002, the detainee and two other former Taliban officials traveled to Pakistan with the objective of acquiring a sedan type vehicle for use in a car bomb attack against the United States military base in Deh Rawhud, Afghanistan.
  3. Activity by United States Special Force teams in Gereshk, Afghanistan was monitored by Afghan military on duty at checkpoints throughout the city. United States Special Force activity, no matter how trivial, was immediately reported to the detainee. The detainee then called his insurgent counterparts via radio notifying them that the Americans were coming and warning them that they should hide.
  4. The detainee passed reports of United States Special Forces activity to Sher Mohammed. Mohammed followed similar reporting pattern to that of the detainee, alerting his insurgent counterparts by satellite phone.
  5. The detainee was captured on 12 February 2003 at the Forward Operating Base in Gereshk, Afghanistan near the Afghanistan Department of Transportation Office.
  6. On the morning of the detainee’s capture guards woke him up and told him that someone came by to tell him that the Americans were holding some of the governor’s brother’s people outside for carrying weapons without permits.
  7. The detainee approached the United States soldiers and told them that he knew these people as Dost Mohammed’s soldiers and they were authorized to carry weapons even though they didn’t have their permits with them.
  8. The United States soldiers asked the detainee to come back to base to answer more questions about the alleged Dost Mohammed soldiers.
  9. The American forces took the detainee’s satellite phone and moved him to the detention facility in Kandahar the next morning.

The following primary factors favor release or transfer

a. The detainee did not participate in jihad against the Russians.
b. The detainee has no knowledge of Taliban in his region.
c. The detainee considers himself a friend of the United States and would not do anything to damage this relationship.

Transcript

[edit]

Bismullah chose to participate in his Administrative Review Board hearing.[9] Bismullah’s Board convened on November 3, 2005.

Second annual Administrative Review Board

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A Summary of Evidence memo was prepared for Bismullah's second annual Administrative Review Board, on 11 October 2006.[8] The memo listed six factors favoring continued detention. The memo listed six factors favoring release or transfer.

The following primary factors favor continued detention

a. Commitment
  1. A source stated that the 40-man unit is a part of the Taliban and receives money and weapons from al Qaida.
  2. A source stated that the detainee had been a member of the Taliban for six years.
  3. A source stated that the detainee provided some tactical information for the 40-man team and used a short-range radio and a long-range satellite telephone to communicate.
  4. Leaders of a terrorist organization directed the detainee to find the local Afghan that were helping the Americans and kill them. The detainee was augmented with 25 armed personnel and three trucks from a known Taliban supporter. The detainee traveled the streets of a city in Afghanistan at night, asking questions about the Americans and those who spoke to them.
b. Connections/Associations
  1. A source stated that the detainee worked for the Commander of the 40-man assassination group on the terrorist team.
  2. A known Taliban supporter tried to get the detainee released because he had a lot of information on the former Taliban.

The following primary factors favor release or transfer

a. The detainee claims he has never had any association with the Taliban.
b. The detainee denied having any affiliation with the 40-man team and denied knowing the commander of the 40-man team. The detainee stated that the Commander of the 40-man team was his enemy and so was the Taliban.
c. The detianee claimed that he had no knowledge of the Taliban in his region.
d. The detainee claims he has never used his employment to provide any services to the Taliban.
e. The detainee stated that he had no reason to watch Americans or tell anyone what Americans do because he considers the Americans his friends.
f. The detainee claims he has never provided armed guards for any Taliban tasking.

Transcript

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Bismullah chose to participate in his Administrative Review Board hearing.[10] Bismullah’s Board convened on November 3, 2005.

Affidavit from Haji Mohammed Wali

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Attached to his transcript was a covering letter and an affidavit from his brother Haji Mohammed Wali.[11]

Third annual Administrative Review Board

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A Summary of Evidence memo was prepared for Bismullah's third annual Administrative Review Board.[12]

The following primary factors favor continued detention

a. Commitment
  1. The detainee was identified as part of the 40-man team that conducted operations against American forces.
  2. The 40-man unit was known to be tasked with carrying out several political assassinations.
  3. The 40-man unit was identified as part of the Taliban, and was known to receive money and weapons from al Qaida. The detainee was identified as having been a member of the Taliban for six years.
  4. The detainee was identified as having provided some tactical information for the 40-man team and having used a short-range radio and a long-range satellite telephone to communicate.
  5. The leaders of a terrorist organization were known to have directed the detainee to find the local Afghans that were helping the Coalition Forces and kill them. The detainee was augmented with 25-armed personnel and three trucks from a known Taliban supporter. The detainee traveled the streets of a city in Afghanistan at night, asking questions about Coalition Forces and those who spoke to them.
  6. Afghan Military Forces soldiers on duty at checkpoints throughout the city immediately reported Coalition Forces activity, no matter how trivial, to the detainee. The detainee would then radio his insurgent counterparts to notify them that the Coalition Forces were coming and warn them that they should hide. The detainee would also pass reports of Coalition Forces activity to Sher Mohammed.
b. Connections/Associations
  1. The detainee stated he was appointed Director of Transportation for Gereshk, Helmand Province through family connections with the Governor of Helmand Province, Sher Mohammed.
  2. Sher Mohammed headed a communications network that compromised operations by Coalition Forces in Helmand Province, Afghanistan.
  3. Sher Mohammed stated publicly that he was, and always would be, Taliban.
  4. The detainee stated he would die for Sher Mohammed if he had to.
  5. The detainee was known to have worked for the commander of the 40-man unit.
c. Other Relevant Data
  1. The detainee stated he affected the release of six people who were captured with four to five AK-47 rifles and no identification. The detainee stated he was expected to negotiate the release of the captured individuals by virtue of his position in the village and his relationship with Helmand's governor, Sher Mohammed. The detainee states that on the day he was detained, he was visiting Sher Mohammed in Lashkar Gah, Afghanistan and had met some of the Americans who later arrested him. The detainee stated he was captured on 12 February 2003. The detainee stated he was detained while helping the six captured individuals because he had a satellite phone.
  2. The detainee stated he was last in Pakistan in November 2002 to take his mother to a doctor.

The following primary factors favor release or transfer

a. The detainee stated he had no knowledge of Taliban in his region. The detainee stated his satellite phone was used only to report problems within his department to the governor and to talk to friends.
b. The detainee stated he has never heard of Abdul Wahed. The detainee stated he has never conducted night surveillance searching for information relating to Afghanistan citizens assisting United States Armed Forces. The detainee considers himself a friend of the United States and would not do anything to damage this relationship.
c. The detainee denied having any affiliation with the 40-man unit headed by Abdul Wahed and denied knowing Wahed. The detainee stated Wahed was his enemy and so was the Taliban.
d. The detainee stated he never spoke on his satellite telephone with others suspected to be on the 40-Man terrorist unit.
e. The detainee stated he has never had any association with the Taliban. The detainee stated he never used the Department of Transportation to provide any service to the Taliban. The detainee stated he has never provided armed guards for any Taliban tasking.
f. The detainee stated he had no reason to watch Americans or tell anyone what Americans do because he considers the Americans his friends.
g. The detainee stated that before he was arrested, he did not know of any Taliban, al Qaida, or Fidayan Islam members or sympathizers in the area. The detainees stated everyone was happy in the area and there was no anti-coalition activity taking place.

Board recommendations

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On January 9, 2009, the Department of Defense released two heavily redacted memos, from his Board, to Gordon England, the Designated Civilian Official.[13][14] The review board convened on December 14, 2007. The Board's recommendation was unanimous. The Board's recommendation was redacted. The Board's recommendation was forwarded to England on January 27, 2008. England authorized continued detention on February 2, 2008.

Bismullah v. Gates

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Bismullah had a writ of habeas corpus submitted on his behalf -- Bismullah v. Gates.[15]

On July 20, 2007 a DC Court of Appeals ruled that Bismullah's lawyers, and by extension, all the captive's lawyers, were entitled to access all the classified evidence in their captive's dossiers.[16][17]

Determined not to have been an enemy combatant after all

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On January 17, 2009, Carol Rosenberg, writing in the Miami Herald, quoted Guantanamo spokesman Jeffrey Gordon, that a panel of officers had recently reviewed Bismullah's "enemy combatant" status, and determined, "based on new evidence", that he was not an enemy combatant after all.[18] Bismullah was released to Afghanistan on January 17. Five other men, an Algerian and four Iraqis, were repatriated to custody of their home countries.

William Glaberson, writing in the New York Times, reported that the recent review relied on affidavits from Sher Mohammed Akhundzada, a member of the Meshrano Jirga, the upper house of Afghanistan's national legislature, and from his brother, Haji Mohammad Wali.[19] Glaberson reported that a statement from Bismullah's brother's was ruled "not reasonably available, even though he was a Karzai government spokesmen.

See also

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References

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  1. ^ OARDEC. "List of Individuals Detained by the Department of Defense at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba from January 2002 through May 15, 2006" (PDF). United States Department of Defense. Archived (PDF) from the original on 2007-09-30. Retrieved 2006-05-15. Works related to List of Individuals Detained by the Department of Defense at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba from January 2002 through May 15, 2006 at Wikisource
  2. ^ Margot Williams (2008-11-03). "Guantanamo Docket: Haji Bismullah". New York Times. Retrieved 2010-10. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help)
  3. ^ "Q&A: What next for Guantanamo prisoners?". BBC News. 2002-01-21. Retrieved 2008-11-24. mirror
  4. ^ OARDEC (26 October 2004). "Summary of Evidence for Combatant Status Review Tribunal -- Bismullah, Haji" (PDF). United States Department of Defense. pp. pages 98=99. Retrieved 2007-11-22. {{cite web}}: |pages= has extra text (help)
  5. ^ OARDEC (date redacted). "Summarized Detainee Transcript" (PDF). United States Department of Defense. pp. 54–60. Retrieved 2010-04-20. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  6. ^ "US releases Guantanamo files". The Age. April 4, 2006. Retrieved 2008-03-15.
  7. ^ (Spc Timothy Book (Friday March 10, 2006). "Review process unprecedented" (PDF). JTF-GTMO Public Affairs Office. p. 1. Retrieved 2007-10-10. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  8. ^ a b OARDEC (12 October 2005). "Unclassified Summary of Evidence for Administrative Review Board in the case of Bismullah, Haji" (PDF). United States Department of Defense. pp. pages 1–3. Retrieved 2007-11-22. {{cite web}}: |pages= has extra text (help) Cite error: The named reference "ArbSummaryOfEvidenceBismullah968" was defined multiple times with different content (see the help page).
  9. ^ OARDEC (November 3, 2005). "Summary of Administrative Review Board Proceedings for ISN 968" (PDF). United States Department of Defense. pp. pages 83–94. Retrieved 2007-11-22. {{cite news}}: |pages= has extra text (help)
  10. ^ OARDEC (November 3, 2005). "Summary of Administrative Review Board Proceedings for ISN 968" (PDF). United States Department of Defense. pp. pages 78–84. Retrieved 2007-11-22. {{cite news}}: |pages= has extra text (help)
  11. ^ OARDEC (February 10, 2006). "Declaration of Haji Mohammed Wali" (PDF). United States Department of Defense. pp. pages 85–95. Retrieved 2007-11-22. {{cite news}}: |pages= has extra text (help)
  12. ^ OARDEC (2007-12-04). "Unclassified Summary of Evidence for Administrative Review Board in the case of Unknown, Bismullah" (PDF). United States Department of Defense. pp. pages 57–59. Retrieved 2009-01-18. {{cite web}}: |pages= has extra text (help)
  13. ^ OARDEC (2008-01-27). "Administrative Review Board assessment and recommendation ICO ISN 968" (PDF). United States Department of Defense. pp. page 538. Retrieved 2009-01-18. {{cite web}}: |pages= has extra text (help)
  14. ^ OARDEC (2007-12-14). "Classified Record of Proceedings and basis of Administrative Review Board recommendation for ISN 968" (PDF). United States Department of Defense. pp. pages 539–546. Retrieved 2009-01-18. {{cite web}}: |pages= has extra text (help)
  15. ^ Lyle Denniston (May 10, 2007). "New developments on detainees". Scotusblog. Archived from the original on 2007-09-07. Retrieved 2007-09-18.
  16. ^ "Bismullah v. Gates" (PDF). United States Department of Justice. 2008-07-20. Retrieved 2007-09-18.
  17. ^ Kristine A Huskey (Fall 2007). "Standards and Procedures for Classifying "Enemy Combatants": Congress, What Have You Done?". Texas International Law Journal. Retrieved 2008-04-29.
  18. ^ {{Cite news | url=http://www.miamiherald.com/news/nation/story/858981.html | title=Six more detainees freed from Guantánamo | publisher=Miami Herald | author=Carol Rosenberg | date=2009-01-17 | accessdate=2009-01-18 | quote= | archiveurl=http://www.webcitation.org/query?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.miamiherald.com%2Fnews%2Fnation%2Fstory%2F858981.html&date=2009-01-18 | archivedate=2009-01-18
  19. ^ William Glaberson (2009-01-19). "Rulings of wrongful detentions at Guantánamo". New York Times. Asked about the panel's decision, which was not publicly announced and seemed to acknowledge a mistake of grand proportions, a Pentagon spokeswoman said, 'Bismullah was lawfully detained as an enemy combatant based on the information that was available at the time.'
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