Abu Zubaydah's Eye.....

There are so many sad and infuriating situations at Guantanamo and Abu Z. is one of them. This is the man that was water boarded almost 100 times because my government thought he was Al-Qaeda and thought he had information. Oops on that one- he was not al-queda- and he had no valuable information. But he was tortured to the point that the torturers were afraid they could be held liable if Abu Z. was ever set free and allowed to talk freely about what he had been subjected to. The torturers were assured at the highest levels of my government that Abu Z. would never be set free.... so far those assurances have held.

In addition to all of the torture techniques that were utilized on Abu Z. during those two + years of extreme torture (not to be confused with the day to day torture of being held in isolation at Guantanamo) Abu Z. lost one of his eyes. We still do not know when or how this happened-- although this statement from war criminal John Yoo may explain what happened:

"In 2003, John Yoo, then a senior lawyer at the Justice Department, wrote a memo, now declassified, in which he said that “to put out or destroy an eye” could be legal as long as no specific intent to cause the prisoner severe pain could be proved."

The fact that this man (John Yoo) is teaching young lawyers instead of sitting in a prison cell is appalling. 
Anyway, read the rest of this article discussing the treatment of Abu Z and the lingering questions about his missing eye. HERE. Abu Z needs to be moved out of Guantanamo and to a safe haven.
(and the slimebag Yoo needs to be moved from his safe haven to a place less hospitable.)

Moazamm Begg writes about Khadr

In a moving account, former guantanamo detainee Moazamm Begg writes about his detention along side the young and very wounded Omar Khadr while both were held at the U.S. base in Bagram. Omar had just turned 15 years old when they were locked in a cell together.
Read his account here.

Attempts by the FBI to infiltrate Gitmo Military tribunals leads to more delays....

When will this farce ever end?
Read more here.

The Children of Guantanamo...

Omar Khadr was not the only child held at Guantanamo.... and there are still other young men being held who have been at the base since they were seventeen and eighteen. Read more here.

Musical Interlude

Voted the Number One Protest Song by Rolling Stone magazine... the unofficial U.S. anthem.

More details emerge regarding tortue of CIA detainee Majid Khan.

June 2, 2015, New York – Today, unclassified information detailing the CIA’s torture of Guantánamo prisoner Majid Khan was made public for the first time by Reuters, including the fact that he was waterboarded on two separate occasions. Khan’s attorney at the Center for Constitutional Rights (CCR), J. Wells Dixon, commented:

“Majid Khan’s personal experiences, notes of which were cleared by the government for release, confirm that the CIA has repeatedly and continuously lied about the torture program. As layers of secrecy have been peeled away throughout the Obama administration, we see more and more evidence of CIA savagery and treachery. 

Read the rest here.

Don't ask for Justice-- demand it!

Those are the words of Shaker Aamer as he thanks British members of parliament and others for championing his cause:

Britain's last Guantanamo Bay detainee pleaded his innocence last night as he thanked campaigners who have highlighted the scandal of his ongoing captivity.

Shaker Aamer remains in legal limbo having spent 13 years in military prison without charge or trial. 

In declassified extracts from the 48-year-old’s letters, shown to the Daily Mail, he told his campaigners: ‘Don’t ask for justice – demand it.

Read the rest here.

Omar Khadr....In His Own Words....

Open a window. Open a bank account. Get a driver's license. Get a library card. There are so many small skills to be learned by a man who has loomed large since he was shot and captured in Afghanistan at the age of 15 - a man who has never been allowed to speak publicly.
read the rest here.

The story of Muhammad Rahim

... one of the so-called high value detainees...

And since this sorry man is considered "high value" his story should make you shudder about the so called "low-value" detainees.....
read about him here.

Happy Memorial Day..... a day late

Meanwhile--- Abu Zubaydah continues to be ignored....

Abu Zubaydah is one of those names that many people recognize-- they recognize it because the Bush government claimed he was the number 3 in al- Qaeda and they water boarded him over 100 times...Oops on that one-- turns out he was not connected to A-Qaeda or the Taliban. So what happens to Abu Zubayda--- we ignore him.... and I guess hope that he just disappears from the world conscience. There is a good chance of that since the judge in his habeas corpus petition has been ignoring that petition for years.... Read more about that particular forgotten detainee here.

British Members of Parliament head to DC to demand return of Shaker Aamer

The ongoing battle to get Shaker Aamer back to Britain continues today with the help of some members of parliament... Read more here

Poor Poland....

Seems the Poles do not want to pay for their sins....
Can't blame them as the US has never been held accountable.... but still?
Read more here.

Pete Townshend sings new song "Guantanamo" UPDATED

You can hear it here..

Rolling Stone has more here.

United Nations looks at the U.S. Human Rights Record...

And it is not a pretty picture!
The periodic review was last monday and the report has not been issued yet but from all accounts the U.S. received a scathing review... Police violence and racism were some of the issues but there is also the ongoing problem of the U.S. not allowing a full investigation of Guantanamo. Which is not too surprising since even our politicians are not allowed access to the place...
You can look at some of the concerns here.... and some of the questions here...
I will post the report when it is released.