Abdulmalik Mohammed
Encyclopedia
Abdulmalik Mohammed is a citizen of Kenya
currently held in extrajudicial detention
in the United States
' Guantanamo Bay detention camps, in Cuba
.
Abdulmalik was captured in February 2007, on suspicion of leading a terrorist bomb-plot in Mombassa. He was transferred to Guantanamo on 26 March 2007.
According to Kenya's Daily Nation
Abdulmalik was a protege of Harun Fazul, described as "...the most wanted terror suspect in the region."
According to Kenya's Daily Nation:
According to a British Broadcasting Corporation report from 4 May 2007 Abdulmalik Mohammed confessed, under interrogation, to a role in the 2002 bombing of the Paradise Hotel
in Mombassa.
According to the BBC report Abdulmalik Mohammed had been transferred to Guantanamo a month earlier.
requested permission to meet with Abdul Malik and Mustafa al-Hawsawi
.
Hamdan's attorneys had previously requested permission to get the "high-value detainees" to answer written questions, which would confirm that if Hamdan played a role in al Qaeda it had been a peripheral one.
Abdul Malik and Mustafa al-Hawsawi declined to answer the questions, because they said they had no way to know that the questions purporting to be from Hamdan's attorneys was not a ruse.
Andrea J. Prasow
requested permission for Lieutenant Commander
Brian Mizer to meet in person with the two men to try to assure them that the questions were not a ruse, and would not be shared with their interrogators.
convened to confirm or refute whether he should be classed as an "enemy combatant".
In an interview with the East Africa Standard
Abdulmalik Mohamed's lawyer Clara Gutteridge described the difficulties Reprieve had first with meeting with him, and later to get their notes released after a security check. They were told that the meeting, and the release of notes, were not permitted until a captive had their Combatant Status Review Tribunal. But Guantanamo authorities failed to schedule his Combatant Status Review Tribunal
In her interview Gutteridge speculated that the reason Abdulmalik Mohamed never had a Combatant Status Review Tribunal scheduled is that the USA had no evidence to justify his detention.
She said he had been transferred to camp 4, the camp for the most privilege, most compliant captives, two months after his arrival in Guantanamo, and that FBI interrogators had told him they did not believe he belonged in Guantanamo, and there was an order in Washington for his release.
Gutteridge said Reprieve successfully litigated to get access to Abdulmalik Mohamed in early 2008, but their notes had not been cleared, and they had not been allowed to talk about them until early October 2008.
Gutteridge said that when Reprieve finally got access to Abdulmalik he informed them that he had been abused both when he was in Kenyan custody, and later in American custody.
He informed them that he had been held in Bagram
and Kabul
, prior to his transfer to Guantanamo.
The BBC reports that his family have an affidavit from Kenyan police stating that they have no reason to suspect that he has any ties to terrorism.
His first hearing is scheduled for 14 January 2010.
The Associated Press
reports that he has had a Combatant Status Review Tribunal
, but that the United States Department of Defense
has refused to make public a transcript as it has for all of the other captives.
According to the Associated Press DoD spokesman Major Tanya Bradsher asserted that the transcript from his CSR Tribunal remained classified.
The Associated Press quoted Cori Crider, of the human rights organization Reprieve
, which has helped with his defense.
Crider claimed that the allegations against him were all based on confession coerced through torture. Crider claimed that Kenyan interrogators had threatened to castrate him if he did not confess to the allegations leveled against him.
Kenyan law allows the Police to hold suspects for 14 days, before they lay a charge.
The lawsuit filed on Abdulmalik's behalf says police held him for longer than the 14 days the law allows, from February 13, 2007 to February 27, 2007, in addition to subjecting him to abusive interrogation techniques, and not letting him consult legal advice.
Kenyan Police officials assert that he was held for less than 14 days, and that he was released—that they did not hand him over to US officials
.
According to The Standard
Kenyan Justice Minister Mutula Kilonzo
"broke silence" and requested the United States to repatriate Abdulmalik in December 2009.
In April 2010 Reuters
and the Associated Press
reported that the Kenyan Foreign Ministry had written to Abdulmalik's lawyers, informing them that they had initiated the process of getting him repatriated.
Kenya
Kenya , officially known as the Republic of Kenya, is a country in East Africa that lies on the equator, with the Indian Ocean to its south-east...
currently held in extrajudicial detention
Extrajudicial detention
Arbitrary or extrajudicial detention is the detention of individuals by a state, without ever laying formal charges against them.Although it has a long history of legitimate use in wartime , detention without charge, sometimes in secret, has been one of the hallmarks of totalitarian states...
in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
' Guantanamo Bay detention camps, in Cuba
Cuba
The Republic of Cuba is an island nation in the Caribbean. The nation of Cuba consists of the main island of Cuba, the Isla de la Juventud, and several archipelagos. Havana is the largest city in Cuba and the country's capital. Santiago de Cuba is the second largest city...
.
Abdulmalik was captured in February 2007, on suspicion of leading a terrorist bomb-plot in Mombassa. He was transferred to Guantanamo on 26 March 2007.
According to Kenya's Daily Nation
Daily Nation
The Daily Nation is a Kenyan independent newspaper. It is the most influential newspaper in Kenya with a daily circulation of about 205,000 copies. The total readership is likely to be higher as each copy is read by a large number of people...
Abdulmalik was a protege of Harun Fazul, described as "...the most wanted terror suspect in the region."
According to Kenya's Daily Nation:
According to a British Broadcasting Corporation report from 4 May 2007 Abdulmalik Mohammed confessed, under interrogation, to a role in the 2002 bombing of the Paradise Hotel
Paradise Hotel
The first season of Paradise Hotel aired on Fox from June 18, 2003 to October 1, 2003 with thirty episodes and was hosted by Amanda Byram. A similar show called Forever Eden was produced the following year...
in Mombassa.
According to the BBC report Abdulmalik Mohammed had been transferred to Guantanamo a month earlier.
Questions from Salim Ahmed Hamdan's defense attorney
On 23 April 2008 attorneys working on behalf of Salim Ahmed HamdanSalim Ahmed Hamdan
Salim Ahmed Hamdan is a Yemeni man, captured during the invasion of Afghanistan, and imprisoned at Guantanamo Bay. He admits to being Osama bin Laden's personal driver claiming he needed the $200 monthly salary that came with the job....
requested permission to meet with Abdul Malik and Mustafa al-Hawsawi
Mustafa al-Hawsawi
Mustafa al-Hawsawi is a member of the militant Islamic organization al-Qaeda and allegedly an organizer and financer of the September 11 attacks....
.
Hamdan's attorneys had previously requested permission to get the "high-value detainees" to answer written questions, which would confirm that if Hamdan played a role in al Qaeda it had been a peripheral one.
Abdul Malik and Mustafa al-Hawsawi declined to answer the questions, because they said they had no way to know that the questions purporting to be from Hamdan's attorneys was not a ruse.
Andrea J. Prasow
Andrea J. Prasow
Andrea J. Prasow is an American lawyer whose work particularly focuses on the rights of individuals detained in the "War on Terror". When she was with the firm Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison, Prasow represented Saudi detainees in their petition for habeas corpus.Later as a defense...
requested permission for Lieutenant Commander
Lieutenant Commander
Lieutenant Commander is a commissioned officer rank in many navies. The rank is superior to a lieutenant and subordinate to a commander...
Brian Mizer to meet in person with the two men to try to assure them that the questions were not a ruse, and would not be shared with their interrogators.
Combatant Status Review Tribunal
Abdulmalik Mohamed has not had a Combatant Status Review TribunalCombatant Status Review Tribunal
The Combatant Status Review Tribunals were a set of tribunals for confirming whether detainees held by the United States at the Guantanamo Bay detention camp had been correctly designated as "enemy combatants". The CSRTs were established July 7, 2004 by order of U.S. Deputy Secretary of Defense...
convened to confirm or refute whether he should be classed as an "enemy combatant".
In an interview with the East Africa Standard
Abdulmalik Mohamed's lawyer Clara Gutteridge described the difficulties Reprieve had first with meeting with him, and later to get their notes released after a security check. They were told that the meeting, and the release of notes, were not permitted until a captive had their Combatant Status Review Tribunal. But Guantanamo authorities failed to schedule his Combatant Status Review Tribunal
In her interview Gutteridge speculated that the reason Abdulmalik Mohamed never had a Combatant Status Review Tribunal scheduled is that the USA had no evidence to justify his detention.
She said he had been transferred to camp 4, the camp for the most privilege, most compliant captives, two months after his arrival in Guantanamo, and that FBI interrogators had told him they did not believe he belonged in Guantanamo, and there was an order in Washington for his release.
Gutteridge said Reprieve successfully litigated to get access to Abdulmalik Mohamed in early 2008, but their notes had not been cleared, and they had not been allowed to talk about them until early October 2008.
Gutteridge said that when Reprieve finally got access to Abdulmalik he informed them that he had been abused both when he was in Kenyan custody, and later in American custody.
He informed them that he had been held in Bagram
Bagram Theater Internment Facility
The Parwan Detention Facility , also called the Bagram Theater Internment Facility, is a United States-run prison located next to Bagram Airfield in the Parwan Province of Afghanistan.It was formerly known as the Bagram Collection Point...
and Kabul
Kabul
Kabul , spelt Caubul in some classic literatures, is the capital and largest city of Afghanistan. It is also the capital of the Kabul Province, located in the eastern section of Afghanistan...
, prior to his transfer to Guantanamo.
Lawsuits
The BBC reported on December 11, 2009 Abdul Malik's family is suing the Kenyan government over its role in his detention in Guantanamo.The BBC reports that his family have an affidavit from Kenyan police stating that they have no reason to suspect that he has any ties to terrorism.
His first hearing is scheduled for 14 January 2010.
The Associated Press
Associated Press
The Associated Press is an American news agency. The AP is a cooperative owned by its contributing newspapers, radio and television stations in the United States, which both contribute stories to the AP and use material written by its staff journalists...
reports that he has had a Combatant Status Review Tribunal
Combatant Status Review Tribunal
The Combatant Status Review Tribunals were a set of tribunals for confirming whether detainees held by the United States at the Guantanamo Bay detention camp had been correctly designated as "enemy combatants". The CSRTs were established July 7, 2004 by order of U.S. Deputy Secretary of Defense...
, but that the United States Department of Defense
United States Department of Defense
The United States Department of Defense is the U.S...
has refused to make public a transcript as it has for all of the other captives.
According to the Associated Press DoD spokesman Major Tanya Bradsher asserted that the transcript from his CSR Tribunal remained classified.
The Associated Press quoted Cori Crider, of the human rights organization Reprieve
Reprieve
Reprieve can refer to:* In criminal proceedings, the act of postponing the enforcement of a sentence, particularly a death sentence, to allow an appeal* Reprieve , a group of organisations working against the death penalty...
, which has helped with his defense.
Crider claimed that the allegations against him were all based on confession coerced through torture. Crider claimed that Kenyan interrogators had threatened to castrate him if he did not confess to the allegations leveled against him.
Kenyan law allows the Police to hold suspects for 14 days, before they lay a charge.
The lawsuit filed on Abdulmalik's behalf says police held him for longer than the 14 days the law allows, from February 13, 2007 to February 27, 2007, in addition to subjecting him to abusive interrogation techniques, and not letting him consult legal advice.
Kenyan Police officials assert that he was held for less than 14 days, and that he was released—that they did not hand him over to US officials
Extraordinary rendition
Extraordinary rendition is the abduction and illegal transfer of a person from one nation to another. "Torture by proxy" is used by some critics to describe situations in which the United States and the United Kingdom have transferred suspected terrorists to other countries in order to torture the...
.
According to The Standard
The Standard
The Standard is an English free newspaper of Hong Kong with a daily circulation of 231,018. It was called the Hong Kong Standard and changed to HKiMail during the Internet boom, but it changed back to The Standard in 2001....
Kenyan Justice Minister Mutula Kilonzo
Mutula Kilonzo
Mutula Kilonzo is a Kenyan politician and Senior Counsel, currently serving as Minister of Justice after having previously served as the Minister for Nairobi Metropolitan He belongs to the Orange Democratic Movement-Kenya and was elected to represent the Mbooni Constituency.Educated at Mbooni...
"broke silence" and requested the United States to repatriate Abdulmalik in December 2009.
In April 2010 Reuters
Reuters
Reuters is a news agency headquartered in New York City. Until 2008 the Reuters news agency formed part of a British independent company, Reuters Group plc, which was also a provider of financial market data...
and the Associated Press
Associated Press
The Associated Press is an American news agency. The AP is a cooperative owned by its contributing newspapers, radio and television stations in the United States, which both contribute stories to the AP and use material written by its staff journalists...
reported that the Kenyan Foreign Ministry had written to Abdulmalik's lawyers, informing them that they had initiated the process of getting him repatriated.