This book, written with the pace and intensity of a thriller, serves as a tragic reminder of what happens when commitments to law, common sense, and human dignity are cast aside, when it becomes difficult to discern the difference between ... When he obtained a copy of the emails between the JTF-GTMO interrogator and the psychologist in which they discussed how Slahi was experiencing hallucinations, Couch concluded that the hallucinations were not a byproduct of Slahi's treatment but an intended outcome. "He wrote and wrote, he did homework every night. We gave him a computer, and he immediately wrote a long autobiography. At the time, Elwadia could not have known that US intelligence officials considered her son to be a key player in al Qaeda's European and North American operations and a central figure in the 9/11 attacks. ", Nabagha has a habit of filling in gaps in the conversation with the same refrain used by other activists when discussing the case of Slahi. "Man, what happened to me there is beyond description," Slahi told a review panel years later when describing his time in Jordan. He was surrounded by people, but suddenly Couch felt very, very small. At its most compelling, Guantánamo Diary examines the human condition with a thoughtfulness worthy of Viktor Frankl's Man's Search for Meaning. Alongside Jodie Foster, Benedict Cumberbatch and Shailene Woodley, actor Tahar Rahim takes the lead. "My whole purpose was only to help my Muslim brothers wage jihad against the communists who invaded the country and forbade the practice of their religion," Slahi said in testimony before a Combatant Status Review Tribunal in 2004. "He has a wife. They discussed Chechnya, and jihad. "Why are you so afraid of the rooster?" They dug a hole that was six feet long, six feet deep and four feet wide." Commissions staff would grow familiar with it; they called it "the wave." Although eager to close the camp, Barack Obama will authorize the Ministry of Justice to continue the detention of the Mauritanian until 2016. One "struck me twice in the face on different occasions and pushed me against concrete many times because I refused to talk," Slahi said. He called the local police station, saying his neighbor was spying on him; the police suggested he cover the holes with glue. When the plan was executed, Slahi was taken to a boat, in blacked-out goggles and shackles, and was beaten. Slahi says he was beaten, starved, and threatened with torture unless he confessed to being involved in the Millennium Plot. Mohamedou Ould Slahi and Steve Wood met in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, in 2004. Peter Tinti is an independent journalist who has written for Foreign Policy, the New York Times, the Wall Street Journal, and many other publications. "In the 13 years that he has been detained, we've been through one independent hearing, and at the conclusion of that hearing the US government was ordered to release Mr. Slahi," said Theresa Duncan, one of Slahi's pro bono lawyers. Is it possible that Mohamedou Ould Slahi is guilty? He also expressed concern that the case against Slahi was unethical because it refused to consider evidence that might exonerate Slahi. He left Afghanistan in 1991 but returned in January 1992 to fight alongside the mujahideen in Gardez, where, he says, he was part of an all-Arab unit fighting under the command of Jalaluddin Haqqani, a notorious Afghan warlord who was a CIA asset before he eventually joined the Taliban and fought US forces. He is a prisoner in a prison, and no person I know would want to live in the conditions he lives in.". End of story. Source: Le Huffington Post by www.huffingtonpost.fr. One of the co-pilots of United Airlines Flight 175, the second to hit the World Trade Center on 9/11, was a friend from his days as a young pilot in the Marine Corps. David Crow presents a riveting account of his experience growing up on the Navajo Indian Reservation with a mentally ill mother and violent father, an ex-con from San Quentin who groomed David to be his partner in crime. Yet Couch hesitated. "One of the hardest things to do is to tell an untruthful story and maintain it, and that is exactly where I was stuck. This was a then little-known process called extraordinary rendition, also referred to as "torture by proxy," in which a captive is sent to a foreign prison facility in the interest of bypassing domestic laws that restrict US interrogators. "I hate to say it," he said, "but being a Christian is gonna trump being an American.". Slahi's family sifts through the heavily redacted letters he sent home over the years. International Committee of the Red Cross Slahi's guilt remains certain, unquestioned and unquestionable, even as the claims of what precisely he did change. They looked to be in their late 20s or early 30s. ", "Can you turn me over to the United States?" Slahi himself could be forced to act like a dog — collared, barking, and performing tricks. ", Despite Slahi's insistence that he had never been an enemy of the United States, the tribunal unanimously determined that Slahi was "properly classified as an enemy combatant and was part of or supporting al Qaida forces and associated forces that are engaged in hostilities against the United States or its coalition partners.". According to Slahi, he broke all ties with al Qaeda after leaving Afghanistan. The messenger warned Slahi that he would "disappear down a very dark hole" if he did not cooperate, and with all of his electronic files deleted and paper files packed away, Slahi's existence would be "forgotten by all. Best regards! On October 17, 2016, Mr. Slahi was released and transferred back to Mauritania, where he was reunited with his family. And the court would decide whether he is guilty or not. "Military guys are real big about their mommas," Couch said. . Camp Delta was stuffed with desperate men who hadn't seen a woman in years. "That's just who I am.". To this day, the government still refuses to clarify the circumstances under which this illegal rendition took place, even though the president who handed Slahi over to the Americans is no longer in power. "I believe it is very clear that Guantánamo is a huge mistake that the George Bush lied to your country and to the world. "Maybe he had few choices, because many people in the Army come from poor families, and that's why the Army sometimes gives them the dirtiest jobs." Once military interrogators take over, you won't "be invited to tea and snacks," the agent said. Other passages suggest an eye for the finer details of American culture, race relations, and the US government that is reminiscent of Alexis de Tocqueville. Mohamedou's oldest brother, Mohamadin. During this time, Slahi reportedly broke wide open, becoming what intelligence officials considered one of the most significant informants in Guantánamo Bay. ", As bad as that July was for Slahi, August would be worse. "I felt bad for everybody I hurt with my false testimonies," he writes. Soon "they were hitting me all over. His story, steeped in unknowable complexity and murky details, is perhaps the perfect parable of the post-9/11 era. Al Walid, also know as Abu Hafs al Mauritani, was an alleged spiritual adviser to Osama bin Laden, and the phone he was using had been linked to the al Qaeda leader. "We had so many hopes for Obama, but unfortunately, we were all deceived," said Nabagha, back in his office in Mauritania. You are a very big man. The book the government doesn’t want you to read. President Trump wants to bring back torture. This is why he’s wrong. Beaten, why for (why for). It sounded less like a threat than a lament. "You're not corn. When Ahmed Ressam was arrested for his role in the plot in December 1999, intelligence officials learned that he belonged to the Montreal mosque where Slahi led prayer services. In nearly two hours, "Designated Guilty" tells a terrible story of injustice. It was the linchpin to the prisoner's cooperation, the foundation of the entire case. Slahi was forced to stand, stripped naked, bent over; his anal cavity was searched. I laughed, she was so innocent, ”he says. He trained at the al Farouk camp, took the alias Abu Masab, and pledged allegiance to Osama bin Laden. It has been edited twice: first by the United States government, which added more than 2,500 black-bar redactions censoring Mohamedou's text, and then by me. Tor. "We just hope this catastrophe will end," said Jemal, who has since taken the advice of his uncle and is learning English and studying math. Found insideThe best country-by-country assessment of human rights. The human rights records of more than ninety countries and territories are put into perspective in Human Rights Watch's signature yearly report. His organization operates out of a single room, lined with worn couches and faded carpets. In Slahi's case, the jet flew him from Jordan to Bagram Airfield, in Afghanistan, where he was interrogated for two weeks before being taken to Guantánamo Bay. He "was not willing to continue to protect others to the detriment of himself and his family. In January 2003, Military interrogators at Guantánamo began circulating a "Special Interrogation Operation" document that laid out a plan to subject Slahi to months of extreme isolation, 20-hour interrogation sessions, sleep deprivation, temperature extremes, sexual humiliation, and what would amount to psychological torture. "They stripped me naked like my mom bore me, and they put new clothes on me," Slahi said. Later, Slahi was told that his mother and brother were taken from Mauritania. I said, 'What the heck?'" Yahdih clarified, however, that Mohamedou would be willing to go anywhere that is not Guantánamo. "Maybe I'm stupid, I don't know," Slahi later said. Mohamedou was not able to participate in, or respond to, either one of these edits. W hen Mohamedou Ould Slahi came to South Africa to visit the set of The Mauritanian, it was a strange and complicated experience, he says.The film tells the story of Slahi's experience as . Neither seemed particularly fit, nor were they groomed like military men. No, it doesn't work that way: you have to make up a complete story that makes sense to the dumbest dummies," he continues. The Mauritanian government has repeatedly said it would welcome Slahi back, but for his part, Slahi has told his brother Yahdih, a German citizen living in the city of Düsseldorf, that he would like to be sent to America. As usual, he drove his own car to the police station. "Don't worry, I'll be back soon," the 30-year-old told his family. It was a simple prayer. Slahi, the plan outlined, was to be flown over the Gulf of Mexico in a helicopter and told he was being sent to a Middle Eastern country where "the rules have changed.". Swann's small eyes bore in on him, angry and impatient. "Other than my wife, my mom is my best friend," he said. The early life of Mohamedou Ould Slahi. Supporters in Mauritania wait for some semblance of justice to continue to protect the rights of the Slahi.! 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