Abu Sufian bin Qumu

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Abu Sufian Ibrahim Ahmed Hamuda Bin Qumu
Born: June 26, 1959(1959-06-26)
Darna, Libya
Detained at: Guantanamo
ID number: 557
Conviction(s): no charge, held in extrajudicial detention
Status Repatriated to Libyan custody

Abu Sufian Ibrahim Ahmed Hamuda Bin Qumu is a citizen of Libya held in extrajudicial detention in the United States Guantanamo Bay detention camps, in Cuba.[1] His Guantanamo Internee Security Number is 557. Joint Task Force Guantanamo counter-terrorism analysts report he was born on June 26, 1959, in Darna, Libya.

Contents

[edit] Background

According to documents released by the United States Department of Defense[2][3][4]:

  • Abu Sufian Ibrahim Ahmed Hamuda Bin Qumu served for twelve years in the Libyan Army, from 1979 to 1990, rising to the rank of private first class.
  • The documents assert that during his military service he was frequently disciplined for drug and alcohol offenses, absences without leave, and attempted rape.
  • The documents assert that following his military service he received a four year sentence for drug dealing, but that escaped to Sudan, partway through his sentence, in 1992.
  • The documents assert that a foreign government service says that he was a member of the Libyan Islamic Fighting Group.
  • The documents assert that he was a truck driver for the Wadi al Aqiq Company, a company owned by Usama bin Laden, who was then based in Sudan.
  • The documents assert that he worked for al Wafa, a charity that has been accused of links to terrorist organizations, for a few months in late 2001. While working for al Wafa he stands accused of serving as an accountant, delivering food aid, and delivering the tools to dig wells.

The documents state he was captured in late 2001.

The documents include a Summary of Evidence memo prepared for his Combatant Status Review Tribunal in 2004, and two Summary of Evidence memos prepared for his first and second annual Administrative Review Board hearings in 2005 and 2006.

There is no record that he chose to participate in his CSR Tribunal and Review Board hearings. There is no record among the records the DoD released in September 2007 that Gordon England the Designated Civilian Official authorized to make the final decision to release or repatriate Guantanamo captives has authorized his release. Nevertheless he was reported to have been released in October 2007.[5][6]

[edit] Combatant Status Review Tribunal

Combatant Status Review Tribunals were held in a trailer the size of a large RV. The captive sat with his hands cuffed and feet shackled to a bolt in the floor. Three chairs were reserved for members of the press, but only 37 of the 574 Tribunals were observed.
Combatant Status Review Tribunals were held in a trailer the size of a large RV. The captive sat with his hands cuffed and feet shackled to a bolt in the floor.[7] Three chairs were reserved for members of the press, but only 37 of the 574 Tribunals were observed.[8]

Initially the Bush Presidency 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 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 Presidency's definition of an enemy combatant.

[edit] Summary of Evidence memo

A Summary of Evidence memo was prepared for Abu Sufian Ibrahim Ahmed Hamuda Bin Qumu's Combatant Status Review Tribunal, on 27 September 2004.[2] The memo listed the following allegations against him:

The detainee is associated with al Qaida and the the Taliban:
  1. Originally from Libya the detainee lived in Pakistan until the summer of 2001 when he and a friend crossed the border into Afghanistan.
  2. After entering Afghanistan, the detainee traveled to Jalalabad then continued on to Kabul.
  3. While in Kabul, the detainee worked for the al Wafa Organization.
  4. The nongovernmental organization 'al Wafa' reportedly is believed to possibly be a terrorist organization and may have had connections to Usama bin Ladin and Afghan Mujahedin.
  5. The al Wafa Organization has been identified as a terrorist organization.
  6. The al Wafa Organization has been identified as a terrorist organization on the U.S. State Department's Terrorist Exclusion List.
  7. The detainee worked for the director of the al Wafa office in Kabul.
  8. According to the detainee, the director of the al Wafa office in Kabul was connected to al Qaida and knew Usama Bin Ladin.
  9. Members of the Taliban would frequently visited [sic] the al Wafa office in Kabul and had dealings with the director of that office.
  10. After the U.S. bombing campaign started, the detainee fled Kabul and traveled to Islamabad, Pakistan where he was arrested by Pakistani Police and turned over to U.S. forces one month later.
b. The detainee supported military operations against the United States or its coalition partners.
  1. While working for the al Wafa Organization, the detainee traveled to Konduz, Afghanistan to oversee the distribution of rice that was being guarded by four to five armed guards.

[edit] Transcript

There is no record that Abu Sufian Ibrahim Ahmed Hamuda Bin Qumu chose to participate in his Combatant Status Review Tribunal.

[edit] Administrative Review Board hearing

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".
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".[9]

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.

[edit] First annual Administrative Review Board

A Summary of Evidence memo was prepared for Abu Sufian Ibrahim Ahmed Hamuda Bin Qumu's first annual Administrative Review Board, on 28 June 2005.[3] The memo listed factors for and against his continued detention.

[edit] The following primary factors favor continued detention:

a. Commitment
  1. In the Sudan, the detainee joined the Libyan Islamic Fighting Group (LIFG).
  2. The Libyan Islamic Islamic Fighting Group (LIFG) emerged in 1995 among Libyans who had fought against Soviet forces in Afghanistan. They declared the government of Libyan leader Muammar Qadhafi un-Islamic and pledged to overthrow it. Some members maintain a strictly anti-Qadhafi focue and organize against Libyan Government interests, but others are aligned with Usama Bin Ladin's al Qaida organization or are active in the international mujahidin network.
  3. An al Qaida/LIFG facilitator described the subject detainee as a noncommittal LIFG member who received no training.
  4. A LIFG member stated the subject detainee used to be a member of the LIFG but he left. He had not heard that the detainee attended any military training.
b. Training
The detainee was in the Libyan Army from 1979 until 1990. He was a tank driver and left the army as a PFC.
c. Connections/Associations
  1. The detainee's alias was found on a document associated with Usama Bin Laden. The document stated the detainee worked for Bin Laden in Sudan.
  2. In 2001, the detainee worked for Wafa [sic] in Afghanistan.
  3. The nongovernmental organization "Wafa," [sic] officially named al Wafa Igatha al Islamia (Wafa Humanitarian Organization) and headquartered in Saudi Arabia, was believed to have had connections to Usama Bin Laden and Afghan mujahidin.
  4. The detainee met a senior al Qaida facilitator on between ten and twenty occasions.
  5. The detaiene was at a guest house in Kabul, Afghanistan run by Ibn al Shaykh al Libi.
  6. Khalidoun Camp was supervised by Ibn Cheikh al-Libi. Training in the camp included rockets, explosives and destructive techniques.
  7. The detainee's alias was found in a document titled "New Families" on a computer associated with an al Qaida financial operative.
d. Other Relevant Data
  1. The detainee made two trips to Mazar-e-Sharif [sic] in September and October 2001 to deliver rice and equipment to dig wells.
  2. A foreign government considers the detainee a dangerous man with no qualms about committing terrorist acts. They believe he was one of the extremist commanders of the Afghan Arabs[10]

[edit] The following primary factors favor release or transfer:

a.

The detainee stated he never delivered weapons, never fought, never went to a guest house and was never around weapons in Afghanistan.
b.

The detainee stated he does not want to be sent back to Libya because of previous criminal charges related to the sale of hashish and escaping from prison. He stated he is willing to go to a country where "You (the United States) can watch me."
c.

The detainee denied having any knowledge of terrorist activity and insisted that he only worked for Al Wafa as a means ot feed his family. He stated he had no knowledge Al Wafa was involved in any illegal activity and, if he did know of such activity, he would not have worked for the organization.

[edit] Transcript

There is no record that Abu Sufian Ibrahim Ahmed Hamuda Bin Qumu chose to participate in his first annual Administrative Review Board hearing.

[edit] Second annual Administrative Review Board

A Summary of Evidence memo was prepared for Abu Sufian Ibrahim Ahmed Hamuda Bin Qumu's second annual Administrative Review Board, on 19 May 2006.[4] The memo listed factors for and against his continued detention.

[edit] The following primary factors favor continued detention:

a. Commitment
  1. In the Sudan, the detainee joined the Libyan Islamic Fighting Group (LIFG).
  2. The Libyan Islamic Islamic Fighting Group (LIFG) emerged in 1995 among Libyans who had fought against Soviet forces in Afghanistan. They declared the government of Libyan leader Muammar Qadhafi un-Islamic and pledged to overthrow it. Some members maintain a strictly anti-Qadhafi focue and organize against Libyan Government interests, but others are aligned with Usama Bin Ladin's al Qaida organization or are active in the international mujahidin network.
  3. An al Qaida/LIFG facilitator described the subject detainee as a noncommittal LIFG member who received no training.
b. Training
The detainee was in the Libyan Army from 1979 until 1990. He was a tank driver and left the army as a private first class.
c. Connections/Associations
  1. The detainee worked as a truck driver in Sudan for the Wadi al Aqiq Company.
  2. The Wadi al Aqiq Company was owned by Usama bin Laden.
  3. The detainee's alias was found on a document associated with Usama Bin Laden. The document stated the detainee worked for Bin Laden in Sudan.
  4. The detainee was friends with a known al Qaida member in Peshawar, Pakistan.
  5. The detainee was at a guest house run by a known al Qaida member.
  6. The detainee met a senior al Qaida facilitator on ten or twenty occassions.
  7. The detainee lived with another detainee in Jalalabad, Afghanistan.
  8. The detainee worked for al Wafa as an accountant.
  9. The nongovernmental organization "Wafa," [sic] officially named al Wafa Igatha al Islamia (Wafa Humanitarian Organization) and headquartered in Saudi Arabia, was believed to have had connections to Usama Bin Laden and Afghan mujahidin.
  10. Al Wafa is a terrorist exclusion list designee.
d. Other Relevant Data
  1. While serving in the Libyan military, the detainee was arrested and jailed multiple times on several occasions for drug and alcohol offenses, going absent without leave and attempted rape.
  2. The detainee was arrested by Libyan authorities and was sentenced to four years in prison for drug trafficking. He escaped from prison and fled to Sudan in 1992.
  3. The detainee made two trips to Mazar-e-Sharif [sic] in September and October 2001 to deliver rice and equipment to dig wells.
  4. A foreign government considers the detainee a dangerous man with no qualms about committing terrorist acts. They believe he was one of the extremist commanders of the Afghan Arabs.

[edit] The following primary factors favor release or transfer:

a.

The detainee denied having any knowledge of terrorist activity and insisted that he only worked for al Wafa as a means to feed his family.
b.

The detainee insists he never delivered weapons, never fought, never went to a guest house and was never around weapons in Afghanistan.
c.

The detainee stated he does not want to be sent back to Libya because of previous criminal charges related to drug trafficking and escape from prison.
c.

The detainee denied having any knowledge of terrorist activity and insisted that he only worked for Al Wafa as a means ot feed his family. He stated he had no knowledge Al Wafa was involved in any illegal activity and, if he did know of such activity, he would not have worked for the organization.

[edit] Transcript

There is no record that Abu Sufian Ibrahim Ahmed Hamuda Bin Qumu chose to participate in his second annual Administrative Review Board hearing.

[edit] Repatriation

Andy Worthington, the author of The Guantanamo Files: The Stories of the 759 Detainees in America's Illegal Prison, wrote on October 5, 2007 that Abu Sufian Ibrahim Ahmed Hamuda Bin Qumu was repatriated in the fall of 2007.[5]

Speculating as to why he may have changed his mind about repatriation Worthington wrote:

"Perhaps, as one of Guantánamo's truly lost men, he has decided that, if he is to spend the rest of his life in prison for no apparent reason, he would rather be in Libya, where his wife and his family might be able to see him, than in Guantánamo, where, like every other detainee, he was more isolated from his relatives than even the deadliest convicted mass murderer on the US mainland."

Amnesty International reports that its attempts to find Bin Qumu, following his repatriation, have failed.[11]

[edit] References

  1. ^ OARDEC (May 15, 2006). List of Individuals Detained by the Department of Defense at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba from January 2002 through May 15, 2006. United States Department of Defense. Retrieved on 2007-09-29.
  2. ^ a b OARDEC (27 September 2004). Summary of Evidence for Combatant Status Review Tribunal - Bin Qumu, Abu Sufian Ibrahim Ahmed Hamuda 76-77. United States Department of Defense. Retrieved on 2007-11-08.
  3. ^ a b OARDEC (28 June 2005). Unclassified Summary of Evidence for Administrative Review Board in the case of 8-10. United States Department of Defense. Retrieved on 2007-11-06.
  4. ^ a b OARDEC (19 May 2006). Unclassified Summary of Evidence for Administrative Review Board in the case of 46-48. United States Department of Defense. Retrieved on 2007-11-06.
  5. ^ a b Andy Worthington. "Eight More Wrongly Imprisoned Men are Quietly Released: The Anonymous Victims of Guantánamo", Counterpunch, October 5, 2007. Retrieved on 2007-11-08. 
  6. ^ "Pentagon frees eight Guantanamo detainees: The U.S. Supreme Court opens a new term with a detainee-rights issue", The Spectator, 1 October 2007. Retrieved on 2008-04-16. 
  7. ^ Inside the Guantánamo Bay hearings: Barbarian "Justice" dispensed by KGB-style "military tribunals", Financial Times, December 11, 2004
  8. ^ Annual Administrative Review Boards for Enemy Combatants Held at Guantanamo Attributable to Senior Defense Officials. United States Department of Defense (March 6, 2007). Retrieved on 2007-09-22.
  9. ^ Spc Timothy Book. "Review process unprecedented", JTF-GTMO Public Affairs Office, Friday March 10, 2006, p. 1. Retrieved on 2007-10-10. 
  10. ^ Afghan Arabs are foreign fighters who helped oust Afghanistan's Soviet invaders -- Abu Sufian Ahmed Hamuda Bin Qumu was serving in the Libyan Army during the Soviet occupation.
  11. ^ Life after Guantanamo. Amnesty International (December 18, 2007). Retrieved on 2008-04-16.