Abdul Zahir (Guantanamo Bay detainee 753)
Abdul Zahir (عبدالظاهر) is a citizen of Afghanistan currently held in the United States' Guantanamo Bay detention camps, in Cuba.[1]
He was the tenth captive, and the first Afghan, to face charges before the first, Presidentially authorized Guantanamo military commissions.[2] After the Supreme Court ruled the President lacked the nconstitutional authority to set up military commissions, the United States Congress passed the Military Commissions Act of 2006, he was one of the first captives to have charges filed under that system.
Background
Zahir acknowledged that he worked for a foreigner, an Arab, as a translator, but he asserted he was just an employee, and his employment did not mean he supported his employers political views, and he denied involvement in any terrorist related activities his employer may have been involved in. American intelligence analysts assert his employer Abdul Hadi al-Iraqi was a senior member of al-Qaeda's leadership, and that Zahir was an active participant in al-Iraqi's activities.
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Zahir was charged with conspiracy, aiding the enemy and attacking civilians in connection with the grenade attack that wounded Canadian reporter Kathleen Kenna.[3] Kenna wrote an op-ed about her feelings about Abdul Zahir's trial on December 27, 2009.[4] She wrote that she and her companions weren't interested in retribution. She wrote that she hopes Abdul Zahir has a truly fair trial. She wrote that she and her companions couldn't identify their attackers.
Abdul Zahir was transferred to Guantanamo on October 28, 2002, and remains there today.[5][6]
Combatant Status Review
References
- ↑ terrorist charged in Afghan grenade attack that injured Canadian, CJAD, January 20, 2006
- ↑ Alleged Qaeda Member Faces Tribunal, CBS News, April 4, 2006
- ↑ US brings charges against 10th Guantanamo prisoner, Reuters, January 20, 2006
- ↑ Kathleen Kenna (2009-12-27). "The justice I want for Captive 783 [sic"]. Toronto Star. Archived from the original on 2009-12-27. http://www.webcitation.org/query?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.thestar.com%2Fnews%2Finsight%2Farticle%2F742968--the-justice-i-want-for-captive-783&date=2009-12-27.
- ↑ "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. http://www.webcitation.org/query?url=http%3A%2F%2Fhumanrights.ucdavis.edu%2Fresources%2Flibrary%2Fdocuments-and-reports%2Fgtmo_heightsweights.pdf&date=2009-12-21.
- ↑ Margot Williams (2008-11-03). "Guantanamo Docket: Abdul Zahir". New York Times. http://projects.nytimes.com/guantanamo/detainees/753-abdul-zahir. Retrieved 2012-08-11.
External links
- Afghan fantasist to face trial at Guantánamo Andy Worthington
- Pentagon announces war-crimes charges against a 10th captive at Guantánamo -- an Afghan citizen, Miami Herald, January 20, 2006
- Testimony by Abdul Zahir as witness for detainee Islam (p. 10)Pentagon Reprocessed Combatant Status Review Tribunal
- Who Are the Remaining Prisoners in Guantánamo? Part Eight: Captured in Afghanistan (2002-07) Andy Worthington
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