Tariq Khan (Guantanamo detainee)

Tariq Khan
Detained at Guantanamo
ISN 97
Status Repatriated

Tariq Khan is a citizen of Pakistan who was held in extrajudicial detention in the United States's Guantanamo Bay detention camps, in Cuba.[1]

He arrived in Guantanamo on June 16, 2002.[2][3] He was repatriated on 16 July 2003.[4]

McClatchy News Service interview

On June 15, 2008 the McClatchy News Service published a series of articles based on interviews with 66 former Guantanamo captives.[5] Tariq Khan was one of thee former captives who had an article profiling him.[6][7][8][9][10][11]

At the time of his interview Tariq Khan was working as a real estate agent in Pakistan.[11] His McClatchy interviewer described his account of his travel to Afghanistan as far-fetched.

He said that in November 2001 he had traveled to Quetta, a city in Pakistan near the Afghan's southern border, to buy a quantity of cigarettes to sell. His visit coincided with Ramadam. And, at the mosque he went to pray at in Quetta he agreed to accompany some religious pilgrims—not realizing that they planned to cross the Afghan border. Tariq Khan told his interviewer:

""Most Americans don't know the difference between missionary work and going on jihad."

Tariq Khan described his group of pilgrims being captured near Mazari Sharif, nine days later.[11] Mazari Sharif is across the mountains in the north of Afghanistan. Tariq Khan described being crammed into crowded shipping containers by troops under the command of General Dostum, where many of his fellow captives died. He said Dostum's troops fired into the containers, while they were crammed with men.

He described spending several months crammed into a small cell in Dostum's prison at Sherberghan.[11] He said the cell was so crowded the men had to take turns sitting down, because there wasn't enough room for them all to sit down at the same time. He then spent another six months in US custody in the Kandahar detention facility.

Tariq Khan's interviewer described him losing confidence as he spoke, and declining to answer questions about seeing Koran desecration, or to answer questions about conditions at Guantanamo.[11] He said that he had to check in with Pakistani security officials every day, and he was afraid he would be punished for talking to a western reporter.

References

  1. ↑ "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 2006-05-15.
  2. ↑ 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
  3. ↑ "Measurements of Heights and Weights of Individuals Detained by the Department of Defense at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba (ordered and consolidated version)" (PDF). Center for the Study of Human Rights in the Americas, from DoD data. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2009-12-21.
  4. ↑ OARDEC (2008-10-09). "Consolidated chronological listing of GTMO detainees released, transferred or deceased" (PDF). Department of Defense. Retrieved 2008-12-28.
  5. ↑ Tom Lasseter (June 15, 2008). "Guantanamo Inmate Database: Page 3". Miami Herald. Retrieved 2008-06-17. mirror
  6. ↑ Tom Lasseter (June 18, 2008). "U.S. hasn't apologized to or compensated ex-detainees". Myrtle Beach Sun. Retrieved 2008-06-18. mirror
  7. ↑ Tom Lasseter (June 15, 2008). "Pentagon declined to answer questions about detainees". McClatchy News Service. Retrieved 2008-06-20. mirror
  8. ↑ Tom Lasseter (June 16, 2008). "Documents undercut Pentagon's denial of routine abuse". McClatchy News Service. Retrieved 2008-06-20. mirror
  9. ↑ Tom Lasseter (June 19, 2008). "Deck stacked against detainees in legal proceedings". McClatchy News Service. Retrieved 2008-06-20. mirror
  10. ↑ Tom Lasseter (June 16, 2008). "U.S. abuse of detainees was routine at Afghanistan bases". McClatchy News Service. Retrieved 2008-06-20. mirror
  11. 1 2 3 4 5 Tom Lasseter (June 15, 2008). "Guantanamo Inmate Database: Tariq Khan". Miami Herald. Retrieved 2008-06-17. mirror
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