Abd Al Aziz Sayer Uwain Al Shammeri

Abdulaziz Sayer Owain al Shammari
Born September 23, 1973(1973-09-23)
Al Fahahil, Kuwait
Detained at Guantanamo
Alternate name Abdulaziz Sayer Owain al Shammari, Abd al Aziz Sayer Uwain al Shammeri, Abd al Aziz Sayir al Shamari
ISN 217
Charge(s) No charge (held in extrajudicial detention)
Status Repatriated

Abdulaziz Sayer Owain al Shammari is a Kuwaiti citizen formerly detained, without charge, at the United States Guantánamo Bay detainment camps, in Cuba.[1] His Guantanamo Internment Serial Number was 217.[2] The Department of Defense reports that Al he was born on September 23, 1973, in Al Fahahil, Kuwait.

Al Shammari was captured in Pakistan and was transferred to Kuwait on November 2, 2005.[3]

Contents

Inconsistent identification

Abd Al Aziz Sayer Uwain al-Shammeri was identified inconsistently on official Department of Defense documents:

name page document
Abd Al Aziz Sayer Uwain Al Shammeri 1 Declaration of James R. Crisfield, CSRT Legal Advisor
Abd Alaziz Sayir Shamari 10 unclassified summary of basis for tribunal decision
Abd Al Aziz Sayer Al Shammri 18 unsworn detainee statement (csrt)
Abd Al Aziz Sayer Al Shammeri 19 unsworn detainee statement (csrt)
Abd Al Aziz Sayer Uwaln Al Shammeri 28 Summary of Evidence (CSRT)
Abdulaziz Sayer Owain AI-Shammari 3
Abd Alaziz Sayir al Shamari 32 answers to the questions for the family of Abd Alaziz Sayir al Shamari
Abdulaziz Sayer Owain Zaher Al-Shammari 35 State of Kuwait Civil ID Card
Abd Al Aziz Sayer A1 Shammri 61 Al Shammeri's written statement

Combatant Status Review Tribunal

The Bush administration asserted that:

the protections of the Geneva Conventions did not extend to captured prisoners who are not members of the regular Afghan armed force nor meet the criteria for prisoner of war for voluntary forces.[9]

Critics argued the Conventions obliged the U.S. to conduct competent tribunals to determine the status of prisoners. Subsequently, the U.S. Department of Defense instituted Combatant Status Review Tribunals (CSRTs), to determine whether detainees met the new definition of an "enemy combatant".

"Enemy combatant" was defined by the U.S. Department of Defense as:

an individual who was part of, or supporting, the Taliban, or al-Qaeda forces, or associated forces that are engaged in hostilities against the United States or its coalition partners. This includes any person who commits a belligerent act or has directly supported hostilities in aid of enemy armed forces.[10]

The CSRTs are not bound by the rules of evidence that would normally apply in civilian court, and the government’s evidence is presumed to be “genuine and accurate.”[11] From July 2004 through March 2005, CSRTs were convened to determine whether each prisoner had been correctly classified as an "enemy combatant".

Abd Al Aziz Sayer Uwain Al Shammeri was among the 60% of prisoners who chose to participate in tribunal hearings.[12] A Summary of Evidence memo was prepared for the tribunal of each detainee, listing the allegations that supported their detention as an "enemy combatant".

Abd Al Aziz Sayer Uwain Al Shammeri's memo accused him of the following: [13]

a The detainee is a member of al Qaeda
  1. The detainee traveled from Kuwait to Iran and then to Afghanistan soon after 11 September 2001.
  2. Detainee was arrested by the Pakistani Army while attempting to cross in Pakistan from Afghanistan without identification documents.
  3. One of the detainee's known aliases was on a list of captured hard drives associated with a senior al Qaeda member.

Summary of Evidence memo

A Summary of Evidence memo was prepared for Abd Al Aziz Sayer Uwain Al Shammeri's Administrative Review Board, on 20 April 2005.[14] The memo listed factors for and against his continued detention.

The factors for and against continuing to detain Abd Al Aziz Sayer Uwain Al Shammeri were among the 121 that the Department of Defense released on March 3, 2006.[15]

The following primary factors favor continued detention

a. Commitment
  1. The detainee did not tell anyone he was going to Afghanistan. The detainee planned and funded his travel arrangements. The detainee took sick leave from school and began his travel to Afghanistan on approximately 14 October 2001.
  2. The detainee traveled from Kuwait to Iran and then to Afghanistan soon after 11 September 2001.
  3. The detainee was arrested by the Pakistani Army while attempting to cross into Pakistan from Afghanistan without identification documents.
  4. During confinement, the detainee organized others in non-compliance activity.
  5. In confinement, the detainee is considered a very important leader.
b. Training
In 1993, the detainee completed two to three months of basic military training in the Kuwaiti military, after which he was placed in the Army.
c. Connections / Associations
  1. One of the detainee's known aliases was on a list of captured hard drives associated with a senior al Qaida member.
  2. The detainee was present at an al Qaida House associated with a non-government organization with links to al Qaida.
  3. Executive Order 13224, which blocks property and prohibits transactions with persons who commit, threaten to commit or support terrorism, designates al Wafa as a global terrorist entity.
  4. The al Qaida Media House, which houses the al Qaida Media Committee, was located in Qandahar. Senior members of al Qaida were associated with the Media Committee.
d. Intent
  1. The detainee was a member of the Islamic Court in Afghanistan, which enforced proper behavior.
  2. The detainee was present at the prison uprising at Mazar-e-Sharif.

The following primary factors favor release or transfer

a.The detainee did not participate in fighting in Bosnia or Chechnya. The detainee did not receive any training in Afghanistan and he claims no connection to al Qaida.
b.The detainee denies having any knowledge of the attacks in the United States prior to their execution on September 11, and also denied knowledge of any rumors or plans of future attacks on the United States or its interests.

Enemy Combatant Election Form

According to the Enemy Combatant Election Form filled out by Al Shammeri's Assisting Military Officer Al Shammeri did not choose to participate in his Administrative Review Board hearing.[16] His Assisting Military Officer told his Board that the translator who accompanied him told him that he confirmed he spoke the same language as Al Shammeri. Unusually Al Shammeri's transcript does not record his Assisting Military Officer commenting on his demeanor.

A one page memo was attached to his transcript, drafted by the translator who accompanied his Assisting Military Officer, recording that captive 217 had been reluctant to document experiencing torture or rough treatment.

The Classified Record of Proceedings and basis of Administrative Review Board recommendation memo stated[17]:

...The AMO verbally summarized the detainee's comments during the interview and the Detainee's written statement...
...The ARB reconvened on 25 May 05 after receiving correspondence submitted on behalf of the EC, identified herein as Enclosure (9), for further deliberation.

Captive 217's written statement was not included in the transcript, or published with it. Neither was the correspondence submitted on his behalf.

Board recommendations

In early September 2007 the Department of Defense released two heavily redacted memos, from his Board, to Gordon England, the Designated Civilian Official.[17][18] The Board's recommendation was unanimous The Board's recommendation was redacted. England authorized his transfer on 24 June 2005.

The assessment and recommendation memo stated:

  • The detainee is a habeas petitioner in the case of Al-Odah v. Bush Civil No. 02-0828 (D.D.C.). As of the date of this memorandum, no court order requires the government to provide the detainee's counsel or the court notice prior to removing the detainee from U.S. Naval Base Guantanamo Bay.

Al Odah v. United States

Abd Al Aziz Sayer Uwain Al Shammeri was among the eleven captives covered in the July 2008 "Petitioners' Status Report" filed by David J. Cynamon in Al Odah, v. United States on behalf of the four remaining Kuwaiti prisoners in Guantanamo. Seven other prisoners were amalgamated to the case, which charged that none of the men had been cleared for release, even though the government had completed factual returns for them -- and those factual returns had contained redacted sections.[19]

The decision, striking down the Military Commissions Act, was handed down on June 12, 2008.[20][21]

Repatriation and Kuwaiti incarceration

Al Shammeri was repatriated to Kuwait on November 4, 2005.[22]

Al Shammeri, and four other Kuwaitis released when he was, stood trial in a Kuwaiti court, and were acquitted of all charges.[23]

The Washington Post reported that the two main charges were that the detainees had helped fund Al Wafa, an Afghan charity with ties to Al Qaeda, and that they had fought alongside the Taliban.[23]

Further, the prosecution argued that the detainees actions had endangered Kuwait's political standing and its relations with friendly nations.

The detainees' defense had argued that testimony secured in Guantanamo could not be used in Kuwaiti courts, because the detainees and interrogators hadn't signed them. Further, they had argued, the allegations the USA had directed at them weren't violations of Kuwaiti law.

Al Shammeri's trial began in March 2006, and he was acquitted on July 22, 2006.[24]

In October 2011 Jenifer Fenton, of CNN, interviewed Al Shammeri and Fouad al Rabiah at the house of Khaled al Odah, the father of Fouzi al Odah, one of the two remaining Kuwaiti captives in Guantanamo.[25] Al Shammeri and other Kuwaiti captives regularly meet at Al Odeh's house, to lend one another moral support. Fenton reported that Al Shammeri described to her how he traveled to Afghanistan to help provide humanitaria aid.

References

  1. ^ Unclassified dossier, from Abd Al Aziz Sayer Uwain Al Shammeri's Combatant Status Review Tribunal
  2. ^ a b 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. http://www.dod.mil/news/May2006/d20060515%20List.pdf. Retrieved 2007-09-29. 
  3. ^ "Abdulaziz Sayer Owain al Shammari - The Guantánamo Docket". The New York Times. http://projects.nytimes.com/guantanamo/detainees/217-abdulaziz-sayer-owain-al-shammari. 
  4. ^ OARDEC (2006-04-20). "List of detainees who went through complete CSRT process". United States Department of Defense. http://www.dod.mil/pubs/foi/detainees/detainee_list.pdf. Retrieved 2008-07-26. 
  5. ^ "Unclassified dossier from Abd Al Aziz Sayer Uwain Al Shammeri's Combatant Status Review Tribunal". Office for the Administrative Review of Detained Enemy Combatants. October 15, 2005. http://wid.ap.org/documents/detainees/abdalazizalshammeri.pdf. Retrieved 2007-06-27. 
  6. ^ Guantánamo Prisoners Getting Their Day, but Hardly in Court, New York Times, November 11, 2004 - mirror
  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. http://www.defenselink.mil/transcripts/transcript.aspx?transcriptid=3902. Retrieved 2007-09-22. 
  9. ^ "Q&A: What next for Guantanamo prisoners?". BBC News. 2002-01-21. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/1773140.stm. Retrieved 2008-11-24.  mirror
  10. ^ "Guatanamo Detainee Processes," United States Department of Defense, updated October 2, 2007, accessed February 23, 2010
  11. ^ Elsea, Jennifer K. (July 20, 2005). "Detainees at Guantanamo Bay: Report for Congress" (PDF). Congressional Research Service. http://www.fas.org/sgp/crs/natsec/RS22173.pdf. Retrieved 2007-11-10. 
  12. ^ OARDEC, Index to Transcripts of Detainee Testimony and Documents Submitted by Detainees at Combatant Status Review Tribunals Held at Guantanamo Between July 2004 and March 2005, September 4, 2007
  13. ^ OARDEC (September 20, 2004). "Summary of Evidence for Combatant Status Review Tribunal -- Al Shammeri, Abd Al Aziz Sayer Uwain". United States Department of Defense. pp. page 28. http://wid.ap.org/documents/detainees/abdalazizalshammeri.pdf#28. Retrieved 2008-03-13. 
  14. ^ OARDEC (20 April 2005). "Unclassified Summary of Evidence for Administrative Review Board in the case of Al Shammeri, Abd Al Aziz Sayer Uwain Al Shammeri". United States Department of Defense. pp. page 15–16. http://www.dod.mil/pubs/foi/detainees/csrt_arb/ARB_Round_1_Factors_001161-001234.pdf#15. Retrieved 2008-03-14. 
  15. ^ Factors for and against the continued detention (.pdf) of Abd Al Aziz Sayer Uwain Al Shammeri Administrative Review Board - pages 15-16 - April 20, 2005
  16. ^ Summarized transcript (.pdf) from Abd Al Aziz Sayer Uwain Al Shammeri's Administrative Review Board hearing - page 109
  17. ^ a b OARDEC (May 5, 2005). "Classified Record of Proceedings and basis of Administrative Review Board recommendation for ISN 217". United States Department of Defense. pp. pages 95–100. http://www.dod.mil/pubs/foi/detainees/csrt_arb/ARB_Round_1_Decision_memos_000096-000195.pdf#95. Retrieved 2008-03-13. 
  18. ^ OARDEC (23 June 2005). "Administrative Review Board assessment and recommendation ICO ISN 217". United States Department of Defense. pp. pages 83–84. http://www.dod.mil/pubs/foi/detainees/csrt_arb/ARB_Round_1_Decision_memos_000096-000195.pdf#93. Retrieved 2008-03-13. 
  19. ^ David J. Cynamon (2008-08-19). "Guantanamo Bay Detainee Litigation: Doc 88 -- petitioners' status report" (PDF). United States Department of Justice. http://docs.justia.com/cases/federal/district-courts/district-of-columbia/dcdce/1:2008mc00442/131990/88/0.pdf. Retrieved 2008-08-23.  mirror
  20. ^ Stout, David. New York Times, Justices Rule Terror Suspects Can Appeal in Civilian Courts, June 13, 2008
  21. ^ Transcript of Supreme Court oral arguments for Boumediene v. Bush (No. 06-1195) and Al Odah v. US (06-1196)
  22. ^ Kuwaitis released from Guantanamo, BBC, November 4, 2005
  23. ^ a b Kuwaiti court acquits ex-Guantanamo prisoners. Independent Online (South Africa), May 22, 2006
  24. ^ Kuwait's Gitmo men acquitted - again, Kuwait Times, July 23, 2006
  25. ^ Jenifer Fenton (2011-10-28). "Former Guantanamo inmates tell of confessions under 'torture'". CNN. http://www.cnn.com/2011/10/28/world/meast/guantanamo-former-detainees/. Retrieved 2011-10-29. "Al Shammeri, 37, also said he traveled to Afghanistan in October 2001 for charitable reasons -- to teach Islamic law in Afghanistan. His life was "normal" before Guantanamo. He was married and had two children, who in 2001 were six and two years old."  mirror