Khaled Qasim

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Khaled Qasim is a Yemeni citizen who was captured in Afghanistan and detained in the United States Guantanamo Bay Naval Base, in Cuba.^[1] Qasim's Guantanamo detainee ID number is 242. Joint Task Force Guantanamo counter-terrorism analysts reports that Qasim was born on January 21, 1977, in Themeir, Yemen.

[edit] Combatant Status Review Tribunal

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.

Qasim declined to participate in his Combatant Status Review Tribunal.^[2]

[edit] Allegations

The allegations Qasem would have faced during his Combatant Status Review Tribunal were.

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

1. Detainee is a Yemeni citizen who traveled to Afghanistan in late 1999.
2. Detainee twice trained at the Al Farouq training camp.
3. At Al Farouq Detainee received training on the Kalashnikov rifle; M-16; PK machine gun; RPGs; hand grenades explosives and advanced tactical training.
4. Before September 11, 2001, Detainee traveled to the front lines of Afghanistan to fight against the Northern Alliance.
5. Detainee approached a Taliban representative and requested to join the Taliban.
6. Detainee’s brother was apprehended by Yemeni authorities in connection with the bombing of the USS Cole (DDG-67).

b The detainee participated in military operations against the coalition.

1. Detainee was present in Tora Bora, with other al Qaida fighters during Ramadan, 2001, (Ramadan began on November 15, 2001).
2. While in Tora Bora, Detainee and his associates were addressed by Usama Bin Laden.
3. Detainee was captured by a local Pashtun tribe in the Tora Bora region.

[edit] Personal Representative's report on his sessions with Qasim

The detainees Personal Representative reported that Qasim had told him he had been tortured in Afghanistan by his Afghan captors. He said his Afghan captors threatened to retaliate against him if he deviated from the story they told him to tell the Americans.

Initially he said he had told the Americans the story his Afghan captors had coached him to tell. He said he had stopped talking to his American interrogators when they started torturing him too.

He acknowledged coming from Yemen. He denied being trained at Al Farouq or any other camp. He said he spent all his time in Afghanistan living in a guesthouse, and had never been near the front lines. He denied ever being approached by the Taliban, and that if he had he would not have been able to understand them because he does not speak their language.

He said it was his brother who was apprehended for a role in the bombing of the Cole, but that he had nothing to do with the attack.

He denied ever participating in hostilities.

He acknowledged being present in Tora Bora, but claimed he did not know the people there were al Qaida.

He acknowledged that he had been addressed by Usama bin Laden – but it was merely a passing greeting.

When asked why he had spent so long in Afghanistan he said he was fleeing violence and mistreatment from Indian authorities. He said he was planning to go home, when the Cole was attacked. The attack threw suspicion on anyone returning from Afghanistan. Things were calming down, and he was starting to think it might be saife, when al Qaeda attacked the World Trade Center.

[edit] Personal Representative's retraction of hearing torture allegations

The Tribunal reconvened to give the Personal Representative an opportunity to amend what he has said before. On second thought he realized that the detainee had not said he was tortured by Americans. He said he heard other detainees crying at night.

He also amended his earlier account, and said that Qasim had not said he was tortured in Afghanistan, only that he had been mistreated.

[edit] Personal Representative's final clarification over Qasim's torture claims

The Tribunal reconvened a second time, to ask for clarification on the torture question, because the detainee’s statement did say he was tortured. During the final convening of Qasim’s Tribunal his Personal Representative said that Qasim had claimed torture, and had only changed his story when the Personal Representative went back to clarify the details following the first meeting of his 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".^[3]

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.

The factors for and against continuing to detain Qasim were among the 121 that the Department of Defense released on March 3, 2006.^[4]

[edit] The following primary factors favor continued detention:

a. Commitment

1. The detainee approached a Taliban representative and requested to join the Taliban.
2. The detainee was present in Tora Bora with al Qaida fighters during Ramadan, 2001.
3. The detainee stated that he saw Usama Bin Laden (UBL) one time at the Abdul Aziz Center in Tora Bora on the tenth day of Ramadan 2001. The detainee indicated UBL spoke to a group of 10 people for approximately five minutes.
4. The detainee traveled to the front lines of Afghanistan to fight against the Northern Alliance prior to September 11, 2001.
5. The detainee traveled to Afghanistan in response to a fatwa.
6. The detainee stated he is willing to fight for jihad, or the struggl. He believes one should fight against those who invade one's homeland or fight against those who oppose Islam.

b. Training

1. The detainee twice trained at the al Farouq training camp.
2. At al Farouq, the detainee received training on the Kalishnikov rifle; M-16; PK machine gun; RPG; hand grenades; explosives and advanced tactical training.

c. Connections/Associations

1. The detainee's brother was apprehended by Yemeni authorities in connection with the bombing of the USS Cole (DDG 67).
2. The detainee's passport was recovered during a raid on an al Qaida safehouse.

d. Intent

1. The detainee stated that since he does not feel that the US is fair and because of his detention, he has decided to side with UBL.
2. The detainee attempted to convince his reporting agent ^[sic] to convert to Islam.

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

a. Other Relevant Data

1. In the detainee's unsworn statement, the detainee told the Personal Representative that he was tortured and mistreated after capture by Afghanistan forces and was shown a picture of al Farouq and was told to tell the American the story he told earlier during interrogations or he would be returned to them in Afghanistan and be tortured.
2. The detainee stated that he did not actually carry a weapon or participate in a battle. The detainee admitted eh told other interviewers that he had, but now said these statements were made just to satisfy the interviewer.
3. The detainee explained his, "standing guard at Tora Bora" telling agents he was watching for animals, not people.

[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. ^ documents (.pdf), from Khaled Qasim's Combatant Status Review Tribunal
3. ^ (Spc Timothy Book. "Review process unprecedented", The Wire (JTF-GTMO), Friday March 10, 2006, pp. 1. Retrieved on 2007-10-12. 
4. ^ Factors for and against the continued detention (.pdf) of Khaled Qasim Administrative Review Board - page 32