Obama Administration Transfers 12 Detainees to Yemen, Afghanistan, Somaliland
EmailThe number of detainees being held at Guantanamo Bay sank to under 200 this weekend with the transfer of a dozen former prisoners in the last day to Yemen, Afghanistan, and Somaliland.
One hundred ninety eight detainees remain at Guantanamo.
Since President Obama took office, 42 detainees have been transferred to other countries, and one detainee — Ahmed Khalfan Ghailani — was transferred to New York City for trial.
Over the weekend six Yemeni detainees, Jamal Muhammad Alawi Mari, Farouq Ali Ahmed,Ayman Saeed Abdullah Batarfi, Muhammaed Yasir Ahmed Taher, Fayad Yahya Ahmed al Rami and Riyad Atiq Ali Abdu al Haf, were transferred to the government of Yemen.
Detainees Abdul Hafiz, Sharifullah, Mohamed Rahim and Mohammed Hashim, were transferred into the custody of the government of Afghanistan.
Two Somali detainees, Mohammed Soliman Barre and Ismael Arale, were transferred to regional authorities in Somaliland.
The 198 detainees remaining at Guantanamo include 10 scheduled for trial. Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, Walid bin Attash, Ali Abdul Aziz Ali , Ramzi bin al-Shibh, and Mustafa al-Hawsawi will be tried in a US criminal court.
Five others — Ibrahim al Qosi, Omar Khadr, Ahmed al Darbi, Noor Uthman Mohammed and Abd al Rahim al Nashiri — will be tried in revamped military commissions, to take place at Thomson Correctional Center in Illinois.
The Bush administration transferred more than 500 detainees to other countries. Detainees have been transferred to countries ranging from Afghanistan and Iraq to Bermuda and Palau.
-jpt
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It is likely that all of the dozen will eventually be killed in fighting somewhere, before all is said and done.
The religious extremism that creates terrorists rarely goes away, and that simply means all of those will return to the battlefield, at some point in time.
Only permanent elimination, will solve the problem.
Posted by: Rick McDaniel | December 20, 2009, 11:24 am 11:24 am
Neat so when the enemy attacks those places they will be free. Good job Obama (not!!!!) Maybe they will get a hero’s welcome once the governments there free them like that guy from Libya!
Posted by: auntydemocrat2010 | December 20, 2009, 12:16 pm 12:16 pm
I’m sure the strong tradition of human rights in those countries will protect these detainees from the sort of cruel treatment they had to endure in US hands at Gitmo.
Posted by: tj | December 20, 2009, 12:27 pm 12:27 pm
The REAL story here $$$$$$$$$$$…….. I wonder how much the American taxpayers are paying these countries to take these “detainees”…… they surely aren’t doing this out of the goodness of their hearts…
Posted by: vet1973 | December 20, 2009, 12:53 pm 12:53 pm
tj:I’m sure the strong tradition of human rights in those countries will protect these detainees from the sort of cruel treatment they had to endure in US hands at Gitmo.
============
Indeed. A victory for the human rights activists.
Posted by: MayBee | December 20, 2009, 12:59 pm 12:59 pm
Why?
Posted by: LongT | December 20, 2009, 1:14 pm 1:14 pm
Every time Obama is desperate to save face it costs the taxpayers.
He’s paying other countries to take detainees, paying other countries to agree to his crappy climate deal and paying off politicians to vote for Obamacare.
Reckless, wasteful spending of our money to save his legacy.
Posted by: mick | December 20, 2009, 1:16 pm 1:16 pm
Obama Administration Transfers 12 Enemy Combatants to Yemen, Afghanistan, Somaliland
There, fixed it for you.
Posted by: The Audacity of Copenhagen | December 20, 2009, 1:44 pm 1:44 pm
Mick 12/20 1:16pm
You’ve summed it up better then 25 “journalists”.
I’ll never understand why liberals perfer to give our money to mass murderers, criminals, crooks and the insane few rather then funding a “war” to free the peoples of these countries from those slave owners we pay.
It seems so easy. I guess I’ll never understand.
Posted by: MotherRedDog | December 20, 2009, 1:54 pm 1:54 pm
where is “Somaliland?” I am aware of Somalia,where these enemy combatants came from, why send them to a third country rather than home?
Posted by: billhedrick | December 20, 2009, 1:56 pm 1:56 pm
Another example of the president’s commitment to the environment, in this case RECYCLING.
Posted by: Bob | December 20, 2009, 2:04 pm 2:04 pm
I believe this administration has cooked up a diabolically brilliant plan. First, practice missile strikes against Al Queda targets in Yemen.
Then, release detainees to Yemen. Make brownie points with ACLU.
Strike detainees in Yemen. Make points with U.S. hawks. Everyone wins! One website calls it “stocking the hunting grounds.”
Never underestimate Obama.
Posted by: mj | December 20, 2009, 8:42 pm 8:42 pm
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And they’ll all return to the terrorist battlefield to try to kill more Americans.
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Great job.
Posted by: N Waff | December 20, 2009, 9:46 pm 9:46 pm
===========================
And they’ll all return to the terrorist battlefield to try to kill more Americans.
===========================
Great job.
Posted by: N Waff | Dec 20, 2009 9:46:24 PM
__________________________________
The Bush administration transferred more than 500 detainees to other countries – and you’re suddenly concerned about these 12?
Posted by: tierra | December 20, 2009, 10:47 pm 10:47 pm
I’ll never understand
Posted by: MotherRedDog
an accurate and truthful statement
btw: re: ‘funding a “war” to free the people’
so, how come Iran, N. Korea, Russia, and China aren’t attacked, don’t they need to be ‘free’….
Posted by: Oh Yeah | December 21, 2009, 3:22 am 3:22 am
The religious extremism that creates terrorists rarely goes away,
Posted by: Rick McDaniel
that’s for sure, just ask the family and friends of
Dr. Tiller
Posted by: Oh Yeah | December 21, 2009, 3:24 am 3:24 am
Posted by Rick McDaniel:
”Only permanent elimination will solve the problem.”
You got that right.
Posted by: Terry | December 21, 2009, 3:34 am 3:34 am
“The Bush administration transferred more than 500 detainees to other countries – and you’re suddenly concerned about these 12?”
The last of the enemy combatants are the hardcore terrorists. Somaliland isn’t even a recognized country.
Posted by: The Audacity of Copenhagen | December 21, 2009, 9:53 am 9:53 am
Not to worry. The US doesn’t even recognize Somaliland, a breakaway region of Somalia, and news reports indicate the two “freedom fighters” have already been released there.
What could possibly go wrong?
Posted by: Bob | December 21, 2009, 9:57 am 9:57 am
Isn’t Somaliland that made up country from South Park?
Posted by: Huh? | December 21, 2009, 10:11 am 10:11 am
With the clown-in-chief releasing all the worst of the worst still let in Gitmo…My advice to anybody who lives in or near NYC…move..Obam has made you a target again…
Posted by: HobokenJohn | December 21, 2009, 11:02 am 11:02 am
“Justice”, Bush style: A Canadian kid set up by his father to be involved in Afghan causes, and then the insurgency, gets picked up by Americans after a battle, at age 15, gets shipped to Guantanamo, is abused and housed with adult jihadists, (contrary to international law) and is subjected to the warped military commission system which lacked any sufficient evidence to convict him of “war crimes”, the first such charge against a minor in modern history.
Justice Obama Style: Continuation of the above, while 9/11 criminals get a full civil trial.
Posted by: Diana 1976 | December 21, 2009, 11:49 am 11:49 am
The person I refer to in my above message is Omar Khadr, still at Guantanamo after about 7 years, since age 15, perhaps to be sent to the new prison, unless the Supreme Court of Canada forces the Canadian government to ask for his return to Canada which it should have done years ago. Awaiting decision but the Court might be reluctant to interfere in the government’s foreign policy, although it’s already acknowledged this person has been illegally dealt with by the United States.
Posted by: Diana | December 21, 2009, 11:55 am 11:55 am
That’s the way to go Obama, release the terrorist to Yemen! Den of the terrorist, so they can get a refresher course and join up again to fight our soldiers. Happen before, will happen again! They are not going to change, they will be back “in service” in a few weeks-at it again. Everyone needs to google in Blinded Prison guard and read what some suspected terrorist did to a guard in New York. That also, will probably happen again. We don’t need them here or want them here for our prisons and trials! What a foolish ideal! Leave them at Guantanamo Bay!!!
Posted by: TXAR.55 | December 21, 2009, 4:17 pm 4:17 pm
Somaliland is a beacon of hope in Africa. Although not recognized, it is a functioning independant nation. Don’t confuse it with orn torn Somalia
Posted by: jake | December 23, 2009, 10:44 am 10:44 am