Ninth reported Guantanamo captive to die in captivity
The ninth reported Guantanamo captive to die in captivity expired on September 8, 2012, three days before the 11th anniversary of al Qaeda's attacks on September 11, 2001.[1][2] Captain Robert Durand asserted that the captive had been a long term hunger striker, until June of 2012, but had almost recovered from his weight loss. He was being held in segration, in Camp Five. His age, identity and nationality were withheld.
The New Zealand Herald, citing American officials who would only provide information anonymously, reported the dead man was from Yemen.[3]
According to Charlie Savage, writing in the New York Times, camp authorities declined to refute or confirm whether there were any unusual circumstances in the man's death.[4] The New Zealand Herald, on the other hand, quoted Captain Robert Durand stating there had been no obvious cause of the man's death.[3]
Two of the previous eight acknowledged deaths were individuals who died of natural causes -- cancer and heart failure.[2][4] Camp authorities have claimed the other six had all completed suicide. But the long delayed inquiries were heavily redacted and contained suspicious elements. Further, camp authorities withheld key organs and key evidence from a blue ribbon panel of independent pathologists.
References
- ↑ "US says a prisoner has died at Guantanamo; investigation pending into cause". Washington Post. 2012-09-10. Archived from the original on 2012-09-10. http://www.webcitation.org/query?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.washingtonpost.com%2Fworld%2Fthe_americas%2Fus-says-a-prisoner-has-died-at-guantanamo-and-investigation-pending-into-cause%2F2012%2F09%2F10%2Fcfe928c0-fb65-11e1-98c6-ec0a0a93f8eb_story.html&date=2012-09-10.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Ben Fox (2012-09-10). "Ninth prisoner dies at Guantanamo". Seattle Times. Archived from the original on 2012-09-10. http://www.webcitation.org/query?url=http%3A%2F%2Fseattletimes.com%2Fhtml%2Fnationworld%2F2019115923_apcbguantanamoprisonerdeath.html&date=2012-09-10. "He was the ninth prisoner to die at the facility since it was opened in January 2002 to hold men suspected of terrorism or links to al-Qaida and the Taliban. The military has said two of those deaths were by natural causes and six were declared suicides."
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 "Another prisoner dies in Guantanamo". New Zealand Herald. 2012-09-11. Archived from the original on 2012-09-10. http://www.webcitation.org/query?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.nzherald.co.nz%2Fworld%2Fnews%2Farticle.cfm%3Fc_id%3D2%26objectid%3D10833254&date=2012-09-10. "The prisoner's name and nationality were not released. But US officials, speaking on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to release his identity, said he was from Yemen."
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 Charlie Savage (2012-09-10). "Detainee Dies at Guantánamo Prison". New York Times. Archived from the original on 2012-09-10. http://www.webcitation.org/query?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.nytimes.com%2F2012%2F09%2F11%2Fus%2Fdetainee-dies-at-guantanamo-prison.html%3F_r%3D1&date=2012-09-10. "The military provided no immediate details about the scene of the death, including whether there were any signs that the death may have resulted from something other than natural causes. Press officials at the base and at the Southern Command did not immediately respond to a request for such information."
