Abdul Aziz Al Matrafi

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Abdallah Aiza Al Matrafi is a citizen of Saudi Arabia, held in extrajudicial detention in the United States Guantanamo Bay detainment camps, in Cuba.^[1] His Guantanamo detainee ID number is 005. Al Matrafi was born on July 12, 1964 in Mecca, Saudi Arabia.

[edit] Combatant Status Review Tribunal

Combatant Status Review Tribunals were held in a small trailer, the same width, but shorter, than a mobile home. The Tribunal's President sat in the big chair. The detainee sat with their hands and feet shackled to a bolt in the floor in the white, plastic garden chair. A one way mirror behind the Tribunal President allowed observers to observe clandestinely. In theory the open sessions of the Tribunals were open to the press. Three chairs were reserved for them. In practice the Tribunal only intermittently told the press that Tribunals were being held. And when they did they kept the detainee's identities secret. In practice almost all Tribunals went unobserved.

Initially the Bush administration asserted that they could withhold all the protections of the Geneva Conventions to captives from the war on terror. This policy was challenged before the Judicial branch. Critics argued that the USA could not evade its obligation to conduct a 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.

To comply with a Freedom of Information Act request, during the winter and spring of 2005, the Department of Defense released 507 memoranda. Those 507 memoranda each contained the allegations against a single detainee, prepared for their Combatant Status Review Tribunals. The detainee's name and ID numbers were redacted from all but one of the memoranda. However 169 of the memoranda had the detainee's ID hand-written on the top right hand of the first page corner. When the Department of Defense complied with a court order, and released official lists of the detainee's names and ID numbers it was possible to identify who those 169 were written about. Abdallah Aiza Al Matrafi was one of those 169 detainees.^[2]

[edit] Allegations

a. The detainee is associated with the Taliban and al Qaida:

1. The detainee established the al Wafa non-governmental organization in Afghanistan.
2. The al Wafa organization has been identified as a terrorist organization on the U.S. State Department's Terrorist Exclusion List.
3. The detainee was ####### ###### of al Wafa.
4. The nongovernmental organization 'Wafa' reportedly is believed to possibly be a terrorist organization and may have had connections to Usama Bin Laden and Afghan Mujahadden.
5. The detainee met Usama Bin Laden who provided a letter of introduction to assist the detainee in getting established.
6. The detainee met Usama Bin Laden in the Summer of 2001, in Usama's house.
7. The detainee's goal to provide funds to Usama Bin Laden for training caused disagreement within al Wafa.
8. The detainee admitted al Wafa smuggled individuals into Afghanistan after 11 September 2001.
9. The detainee was visited by a member of al Qaida responsible for the protection of Usama Bin Laden at his home in Saudi Arabia.
10. The detainee had numerous conversations with ###### ###### ######
11. The detainee admitted al Wafa purchased vehicles and equipment for the Taliban.
12. The detainee negotiated a deal that allowed the Taliban to direct al Wafa's activities.
13. One of the detainee's known aliases was on an email list of captured suspected al Qaida members incarcerated in Pakistan.
14. The detainee sent his wife and family out of Afghanistan in August 2001.
15. The detainee ########## Islamic extremist and al Qaida associate as ###### ####### ###### ###### ###### ###### of al Wafa.

b. The detainee supported hostilities in aid of enemy armed forces:

1. The detainee purchased weapons, including AK-47's [sic], RPG's [sic] and anti-aircraf weapons, to support the Taliban.
2. The detainee attempted to purchase a $500,000 weapon system for the Taliban.
3. The detainee was the leader of a group of approximately 400 Arab fighters.

[edit] Testimony

Al Matrafi chose not to participate in his Combatant Status Review Tribunal.

[edit] Founder of Al Wafa

Guantanamo detainee Adil Zamil Abdull Mohssin Al Zamil did participate in his Combatant Status Review Tribunal. The allegations against Al Zamil state that he, together with Al Matrafi, and another individual named Samar Khand, were the founders of Al Wafa.^[3]

While there is no transcript from Al Matrafi's Combatant Status Review Tribunal, he gave a statement for Ahmed Abdul Qader, and declined to give one for Mohammed Sulaymon Barre. So, he must have been present in Guantanamo. There is no indication that Samar Khand was present in Guantanamo.

In January 2005 the Department of Defense complied with a Freedom of Information Act request, and released the first of 507 memoranda that each summarized the unclassified allegations against a single detainee. One of the memoranda released in January 2005 contained the allegations against another detainee described as a founder of Al Wafa.^[4] If Samar Khand was not present in Guantanamo, and if the author of these allegations agreed with the author of the allegations against Al Zamil, over the identity of the founders of Al Wafa, then these would be the allegations against Al Matrafi.

a. Detainee is associated with al-Qaida.

1. The detainee admits establishing the al-Wafa organization with detainee ############# ############## ############ ############ ############# ############## ############ ############ ############### ############## ############# ########### ######### ########### ############ ##########
2. The WAFA organization is listed on Executive Order 13224 as an entity that commits or poses a significant risk of committing acts of terrorism.
3. Detainee was closely associated with ######################### and admits that ############# was the spokesperson for al-Qaida and Usama Bin Laden.
4. Detainee stayed at a safe house for several weeks in Pakistan while waiting to flee the country. He was arrested at the house with sixteen other persons by Pakistani authorities.
5. Detainee had prior knowledge of the September 11, 2001, attacks on the U.S.

[edit] President of Al Wafa

Somalian detainee Mohammed Sulaymon Barre requested Al Matrafi as a witness at his CSRT to testify that he had no association with the Al Wafa charity.^[5] He said other detainees had told him Al Matrafi was the President of Al Wafa. Al Matrafi declined to be a witness.

[edit] Witness for Ahmed Abdul Qader

Al Matrafi did agree to give a statement that he had never met Ahmed Abdul Qader.^[6] Al Matrafi was listed as a "director" of Al Wafa in Qader's CSRT.

[edit] References

1. ^ list of prisoners (.pdf), US Department of Defense, May 15, 2006
2. ^ Summary of Evidence memo (.pdf) prepared for Abdallah Aiza Al Matrafi's Combatant Status Review Tribunal - October 28, 2004 page 190
3. ^ documents (.pdf) from Adil Zamil Abdull Mohssin Al Zamil's Combatant Status Review Tribunal
4. ^ CSRT Summary of Evidence memoranda (.pdf) released in January 2005, Combatant Status Review Tribunals - page 34
5. ^ Summarized transcripts (.pdf), from Mohammed Sulaymon Barre's Combatant Status Review Tribunal - pages 30-37
6. ^ Summarized transcripts (.pdf), from Ahmed Abdul Qader's Combatant Status Review Tribunal - pages 5-11