Sulaiman Awath Sulaiman Bin Ageel Al Nahdi

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Sulaiman Awath Sulaiman Bin Ageel Al Nahdi is a citizen of Yemen, held in extrajudicial detention in the United States Guantanamo Bay detainment camps, in Cuba.^[1] Al Nahdi's Guantanamo detainee ID number is 511. The Department of Defense reports that Al Nahdi was born on December 1, 1974, in Al Mukalla, Yemen.

1 Combatant Status Review Tribunal
- 1.1 Al Nahdi's statement
2 Administrative Review Board hearing
3 References

[edit] Combatant Status Review Tribunal

Combatant Status Review Tribunals were held in a small trailer, the same width, but shorter, than a mobile home. The Tribunal's President sat in the big chair. The detainee sat with their hands and feet shackled to a bolt in the floor in the white, plastic garden chair. A one way mirror behind the Tribunal President allowed observers to observe clandestinely. In theory the open sessions of the Tribunals were open to the press. Three chairs were reserved for them. In practice the Tribunal only intermittently told the press that Tribunals were being held. And when they did they kept the detainee's identities secret. In practice almost all Tribunals went unobserved.

Initially the Bush administration asserted that they could withhold all the protections of the Geneva Conventions to captives from the war on terror. This policy was challenged before the Judicial branch. Critics argued that the USA could not evade its obligation to conduct a competent tribunals to determine whether captives are, or are not, entitled to the protections of prisoner of war status.

Subsequently the Department of Defense instituted the Combatant Status Review Tribunals. The Tribunals, however, were not authorized to determine whether the captives were lawful combatants -- rather they were merely empowered to make a recommendation as to whether the captive had previously been correctly determined to match the Bush administration's definition of an enemy combatant.

Al Nahdi chose to submit a written statement to his Combatant Status Review Tribunal rather than attend in person.^[2]

[edit] Al Nahdi's statement

Al Nahdi's statement said that the allegations against him contained exaggeration.

Al Nahdi said he traveled to Afghanistan because he was moved by the plight of children. He was moved by cleric's speeches and the images on TV.

Al Nahdi's statement acknowledges that someone paid his travel expenses, without mentioning who paid for him. He pointed out he traveled there prior to the attacks of September 11, 2001. His travel had nothing to do with a hatred of America. He asserted he had no problems with America. He asserted he played no role in the conflict between the Taliban and the Northern Alliance.

Al Nahdi denied being a member of al Qaeda -- he said he had never heard of al Qaeda until he was arrested.

Al Nahdi acknowledged attending an Afghan training camp, where he saw Osama bin Laden, but he said he had nothing to do with him, and did not identify with what bin Laden was saying. He asserted bin Laden should be charged for what he did. He pled that bin Laden's crimes shouldn't be taken out on him.

Al Nahdi said he had promised his mother he would stay in Afghanistan for no more than six months.

Al Nahdi said he had been well behaved at Guantanamo, with the exception of once throwing juice at a guard when he was upset when he learned his mother had died.

[edit] Administrative Review Board hearing

Detainees who were determined to have been properly classified as "enemy combatants" were scheduled to have their dossier reviewed at annual Administrative Review Board hearings. The Administrative Review Boards weren't authorized to review whether a detainee qualified for POW status, and they weren't authorized to review whether a detainee should have been classified as an "enemy combatant".

They were authorized to consider whether a detainee should continue to be detained by the United States, because they continued to pose a threat -- or whether they could safely be repatriated to the custody of their home country, or whether they could be set free.

Al Nahdi chose to participate in his Administrative Review Board hearing.^[3]