Mohammad Fazl
| Mohammed Fazl | |
|---|---|
 Mohammed Fazl's Guantanamo identity portrait -- the white uniform shows he is considered "compliant" | |
| Born |
1967 (age 46–47) Charchno, Afghanistan |
| Arrested |
2001 Konduz Northern Alliance |
| Citizenship | Afghanistan |
| Detained at | USS Bataan BTIF, Guantananmo |
| ISN | 7 |
| Charge(s) | no charge extrajudicial detention |
Mullah Mohammad Fazl is the Taliban's former Deputy Defense Minister, and is being held in the Guantanamo Bay detention camps in Cuba after being classified as an enemy combatant by the United States.[1] His Guantanamo Internment Serial Number is 7. He arrived at the Guantanamo detention camps on 11 January 2002, and has been held there for 12 years and 1 month.[2][3][4]
Background
Not much is known about Fazl, except that he served as the deputy defense minister under the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (Taliban rule).[5][6] American intelligence analysts estimate that Fazl was born in 1967, in Charchno, Afghanistan.[citation needed] Although he negotiated an amnesty with the Afghan Northern Alliance leader Abdul Rashid Dostum,[7] it is alleged that he is responsible for killing thousands of Shi'a Afghans between 1996 and late 2001.[5]
Held abord the USS Bataan
Former Taliban Ambassador to Pakistan Abdul Salam Zaeef described being flown to the United States Navy's amphibious warfare vessel, the USS Bataan (LHD-5), for special interrogation.[8] Zaeef wrote that the cells were located six decks down, were only 1 meter by 2 meters. He wrote that the captives weren't allowed to speak with one another, but that he "eventually saw that Mullahs Fazal, Noori, Burhan, Wasseeq Sahib and Rohani were all among the other prisoners." Historian Andy Worthington, author of the The Guantanamo Files, identified Fazil as one of the men Zaeef recognized.
Release negotiations
Most Afghans had been repatriated to Afghanistan by 2009.[9] Throughout the fall of 2011 and the winter of 2012 the United States conducted peace negotiations with the Taliban, and widely leaked was that a key sticking point was the ongoing detention of Fazl and four other senior Taliban, Norullah Noori, Khirullah Khairkhwa, Abdul Haq Wasiq and Mohammed Nabi.[10][11][12] Negotiations hinged around sending the five men directly to Doha, Qatar, where they would be allowed to set up an official office for the Taliban.
In March 2012, it was reported that Ibrahim Spinzada, described as "Karzai's top aide" had spoken with the five men, in Guantanamo, earlier that month, and had secured their agreement to be transferred to Qatar.[12] It was reported that Karzai, who had initially opposed the transfer, now backed the plan.
References
- ↑ OARDEC (2006-05-15). "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. Retrieved 2007-09-29.
- ↑ JTF-GTMO (2007-03-16). "Measurements of Heights and Weights of Individuals Detained by the Department of Defense at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba". Department of Defense. Retrieved 2008-12-22. mirror
- ↑ "Measurements of Heights and Weights of Individuals Detained by the Department of Defense at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba (ordered and consolidated version)". Center for the Study of Human Rights in the Americas, from DoD data. Archived from the original on 2009-12-21.
- ↑ Margot Williams (2008-11-03). "Guantanamo Docket: Mullah Mohammad Fazl". New York Times.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 Lawmakers may seek to block Taliban transfer by Mark Hosenball and Missy Ryan. January 6, 2012.
- ↑ Edward Cody (2001-12-24). "If Able, Pakistan to Hand U.S. Bin Laden: Musharraf Makes Pledge as Troops Scour Border, but Says Fugitive May Be Dead". Washington Post. p. A10. Retrieved 2009-07-18. name=UyghurCongress2006-04-28> "Afghans praise, Pakistanis slam Guantanamo list". World Uyghur Congress. 2006-04-28. Retrieved 2009-07-18.
- ↑ Justin Huggler (2001-11-25). "Taliban defect but foreigners pledge to fight to the death: Siege of Kunduz - Victory appears close but fears mount that standoff could still end in bloodbath". London: The Independent. Retrieved 2009-07-18.
- ↑ Abdul Salam Zaeef (2010). "Torture and Abuse on the USS Bataan and in Bagram and Kandahar: An Excerpt from "My Life with the Taliban" by Mullah Abdul Salam Zaeef". Archived from the original on 2010-12-16. "We were not permitted to talk to each other, but could see one another while the food was handed to us. I eventually saw that Mullahs Fazal, Noori, Burhan, Wasseeq Sahib and Rohani were all among the other prisoners, but still we could not talk to each other."
- ↑ M K Bhadrakumar (2012-01-10). "There's more to peace than Taliban". Asia Times. Retrieved 2012-01-11. "Nevertheless, Iranian media insist that three high-ranking Taliban leaders have been released - Mullah Khairkhawa, former interior minister; Mullah Noorullah Noori, a former governor; and Mullah Fazl Akhund, the Taliban's chief of army staff - in exchange for an American soldier held by the Taliban." mirror
- ↑ "Guantanamo Taliban inmates 'agree to Qatar transfer'". BBC News. 2012-03-10. Retrieved 2012-03-12. "If the president pursues this strategy, though, he will need support from wary politicians in Congress, our correspondent says. Many there see a transfer of what they call the most dangerous inmates at Guantanamo as a step too far, he adds." mirror
- ↑ Rahim Faiez, Anne Gearan (2012-03-12). "Taliban prisoners at Guantánamo OK transfer". Miami Herald. Retrieved 2012-03-12. "Five top Taliban leaders held by the U.S. in the Guantánamo Bay military prison told a visiting Afghan delegation they agree to a proposed transfer to the tiny Gulf state of Qatar, opening the door for a possible move aimed at bringing the Taliban into peace talks, Afghan officials said Saturday." mirror
- ↑ 12.0 12.1 Hamid Shalizi (2012-03-10). "Taliban Guantanamo detainees agree to Qatar transfer - official". Reuters. Retrieved 2012-03-12. "Karzai's top aide, Ibrahim Spinzada, visited the Guantanamo facility this week to secure approval from the five Taliban prisoners to be moved to Qatar." mirror
External links
- Who Are the Remaining Prisoners in Guantánamo? Part Two: Captured in Afghanistan (2001) Andy Worthington, September 17, 2010
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