Abdul Majid Muhammed

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Abdul Majid Muhammed
Born:	1978 (age 29–30) Zahedan, Iran
Detained at:	Guantanamo
ID number:	555
Conviction(s):	no charge, held in extrajudicial detention
Status	cleared for release or repatriation

Abdul Majid Muhammed is a citizen of Iran, held in extrajudicial detention in the United States Guantanamo Bay detention camps, in Cuba.^[1] His Guantanamo Internee Security Number is 555. Joint Task Force Guantanamo counter-terrorism analysts estimate Muhammed was born in 1978, in Zahedan, Iran.

[edit] Press reports

The Guardian reported on March 15, 2006 that Muhammad was accused of serving as a night watchman for the Taliban.^[2]

[edit] Combatant Status Review Tribunal

Combatant Status Review Tribunals were held in a 3 x 6 meter trailer. The captive sat with his hands cuffed and feet shackled to a bolt in the floor.^[3] Three chairs were reserved for members of the press, but only 37 of the 574 Tribunals were observed.^[4]

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 United States 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.

[edit] Summary of Evidence memo

A Summary of Evidence memo was prepared for Abdul Majid Muhammed's Combatant Status Review Tribunal, on 3 December 2004.^[5]

The detainee is a member of the Taliban. The Detainee traveled to Afghanistan after September 11, 2001. The Detainee was identified as a "Watchman" for the Taliban. As a "Watchman," the Detainee was on patrol for the Taliban. The Detainee was captured by the Northern Alliance in the vicinity of Ghazni, Afghanistan.

[edit] Transcript

Muhammed chose to participate in his Combatant Status Review Tribunal.^[6] His Tribunal was convened on December 10, 2004.^[7]

[edit] Testimony in Response

1. In response to the allegation that he entered Afghanistan, from Iran, after September 11, 2007:
   • Muhammed identified himself as a Catholic. (When asked to swear in, prior to his testimony, he used the non-Muslim oath.)
   • Muhammed stated the sole reason he crossed into Afghanistan was to try to make money smuggling drugs. This trip was the first trip to Afghanistan to smuggle drugs.
   • Muhammed stated he had no animosity against the United States.
   • Huhammed stated he was wanted by the Iranian military because he was a deserter.
2. In response to the allegations that he was a Taliban watchman:
   • Muhammed denied any involvement with the Taliban.
   • Muhammed stated the Taliban dislike Iranians because they are not Sunni Muslims.
   • Muhammed stated he believed the Taliban would have killed him if they learned he was Catholic.
3. See above.
4. In response to the allegations that he was captured by the Northern Alliiance near Ghazni.
   • Muhammad acknowledged being captured by the Northern Alliance. He couldn't state where.
   • Muhammad described his capture in detail. He was washing himself by the side of the road when several trucks full of armed Afghans drove up and took him prisoner. They spoke to him in Pashtun -- which he doesn't speak. But he could tell they were very excited. And he understood when they shouted "Arab".
   • Muhammad said that when he was taken back to their camp there were some who spoke Persian and attempted to tell the others he was Iranian. The Afghans didn't take notice because the United States paid a bounty for Arabs, not Iranians.
   • The Afghans did not feed him or give him any water during the two days it took them to take him to the Americans.

[edit] Muhammed's Opening Statement

Muhammed told his Tribunal that all the Arab prisoners hated him, because he was Catholic.

Muhammad stated he had been cooperative and well behaved in Guantanamao. He asked for the Tribunal's assistance because he had not broken any regulations.

[edit] Muhammed's Testimony in Response to Tribunal Questions

Muhammed stated he was a well digger. He disliked doing that because it was dangerous and didnot pay well. He also stated he had worked for a drug dealer.

Muhammed stated he became involved in the drug trade after being released from a psychiatric hospital:

"When I got out of the hospital I found a friend and he told me that he was working in narcotics trading and stuff like that. He told me that he would work with me, since it was the first time that I found a friend, at the age of eighteen. Muhammed acknowledged he had been working for the drug dealer for seven to eight years as a street level drug dealer, selling Opium and Hashish.

Main article: Afghan Opium trade

Main article: Guantanamo detainees who admit involvement in the drug trade

Muhammed acknowledged that he was an addict himself, and he was in debt. He acknowledged that he had been arrested, and imprisoned, twice, for selling drugs in Iran.

Muhammed said the trip where he was captured was his first trip to Afghanistan. He knew some Afghans in Iran who had made it sound easy. He had been in Afghanistan for fifteen days, without making any contacts.

Muhammed stated he knew that there was a war in Afghanistan, but he had heard that all the fighting had stopped. That is why he thought it would be safe for him to travel. Muhammed stated he traveled after Ramadan. (ie. December 2001)

Muhammed stated an Afghan friend had obtained a photo ID card, valid to the Hezb-e-Islami Gulbuddin militia, which he gave to him, so he could cross the Iran-Afghanistan border. His friend had taken his picture, used five-thousand Iranian bills to bribe the clerk, and told the clerk Muhammed was his brother.

[edit] Tribunal documents

Lieutenant Commander Peter C. Bradford, one of the officers from the Judge Advocate General's Corps tasked to serve as a legal advisor to the CSR Tribunals, wrote a Legal Sufficiency Review, dated February 5, 2005.^[8] His status was considered by the 12th panel of officers sitting on Combatant Status Review Tribunal.^[9] The President of his Tribunal was a Colonel in the United States Marine Corps Reserve. The JAG officer was a Lieutenant Colonel in the United States Army. The third member was a Lieutenant Colonel in the United States Air Force.

[edit] Conclusions

Abdul Majid Mujahid' CSR Tribunal concluded that he had been properly determined to have been an enemy combatant:^[7]

In particular, the Tribunal finds that this detainee was part of, or supporting, the Hezb-e-Islami Gulbuddin (HIG) group, an associated force engaged in hostilities against the United States and its allies, as more fully discussed in the enclosures.

[edit] Abdul Majid Muhammed v. George W. Bush

A writ of habeas corpus was submitted on Abdul Majid Muhammed's behalf. The Department of Defense released a 32 page dossier of unclassified documents from his CSR Tribunal.^[10] A declaration from Commander Teresa M. Palmer, one of the officers from the Judge Advocate General's Corps tasked to serve as a legal advisor to the CSR Tribunals, was dated August 15, 2005.^[10]

[edit] Administrative Review Board hearing

Hearing room where Guantanamo captive's annual Administrative Review Board hearings convened for captives whose Combatant Status Review Tribunal had already determined they were an "enemy combatant".^[11]

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.^[12] 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.

[edit] Summary of Evidence memo

A Summary of Evidence memo was prepared for Abdul Majid Muhammed's Administrative Review Board, on 12 August 2005.^[13] The memo listed factors for and against his continued detention.

[edit] The following factors favor continued detention:

a. Commitment The detainee worked for a long time as a drug courier between Afghanistan and Iran. The detainee had an Afghani person obtain a letter from the Hezb-e Islami Gulbuddin allowing the detainee to cross the border from Iran to Afghanistan. The detainee paid 5,000 in Iranian money (NFI). Hezb-e Islami Gulbuddin (HIG) has long established ties with Usama Bin Ladin [sic] . (HIG) founder Gulbuddin Hikmatyar offered to shelter Bin Ladin after the latter fled Sudan in 1996. HIG has staged small attacks in its attempt to force U.S. troops to withdraw from Afghanistan, overthrow the Afghan Transitional Administration (ATA) and establish a fundamentalist state. b. Training: The detainee was in the Iranian army in the 3-4 years before he went to Afghanistan. While in the military he was trained in basic drill and the AK-47.

[edit] The following factors favor release of transfer:

a.	The detainee has been diagnosed with a severe borderline personality disorder.
b.	The detainee answered no to questions about belonging to anti U.S. groups, attacking coalition forces, or plans to attack coalition forces if released.

[edit] Transcript

Muhammed chose to participate in his Administrative Review Board hearing.^[14] In the Spring of 2006, in response to a court order from Jed Rakoff the Department of Defense published an eight page ummarized transcripts from his Administrative Review Board.^[15]

[edit] Muhammed's Opening Statement

Muhammed acknowledged that working in the drug trade was a bad thing. He pointed out that he had been well behaved while in Guantanamo. He claimed he is a peaceful person, who disliked fighting. He pointed out to the Board that he is a Catholic. He stated he doesn't disrespect any religion.

Muhammed told his Board that he had tried to kill himself in Guantanamo. He has told the prisoners who wanted to kill him to go ahead and kill him.

Muhammed pleaded for the Board's help in returning to Iran. He told the Board that two months previously he had received a letter from home, saying a drug dealer had killed his daughter. He said that he owed a large debt to this drug dealer, and that is why he went to Afghanistan, to pay off the debt.

[edit] Release

The recommendation Abdul Majid Muhammed's Board prepared for Gordon England, the Designated Civilian Official, were released in early September 2007. ^[16][17] The documents were heavily redacted. They indicate that the Board relied on classified documents from the CIA, the FBI, the United States Department of State and the DASD-DA. The Board's recommendation was unanimous. The Board's recommendation was redacted.

The Board concluded that Abjul Majid Muhammed continued to represent a threat to the United States.^[17]

[edit] References

1. ^ OARDEC (May 15, 2006). List of Individuals Detained by the Department of Defense at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba from January 2002 through May 15, 2006. United States Department of Defense. Retrieved on 2007-09-29.
2. ^ Sketches of Guantanamo Detainees-Part II, The Guardian, March 15, 2006
3. ^ Inside the Guantánamo Bay hearings: Barbarian "Justice" dispensed by KGB-style "military tribunals", Financial Times, December 11, 2004
4. ^ Annual Administrative Review Boards for Enemy Combatants Held at Guantanamo Attributable to Senior Defense Officials. United States Department of Defense (March 6, 2007). Retrieved on 2007-09-22.
5. ^ OARDEC (3 December 2004). Summary of Evidence for Combatant Status Review Tribunal -- Muhammed, Abdul Majid. United States Department of Defense. Retrieved on 2007-11-06.
6. ^ OARDEC (December 10, 2004). Summarized Statement pages 107-121. United States Department of Defense. Retrieved on 2008-03-28.
7. ^ ^{a b} Tribunal President Colonel redacted, USMCR. Combatant Status Review Tribunal decision report cover sheet. United States Department of Defense. Retrieved on 2007-11-06.
8. ^ Lieutenant Commander Peter C. Bradford (February 5, 2005). Legal Sufficiency Review of Combatant Status Review Tribunal for detainee ISN 555 pages 71-72. OARDEC. Retrieved on 2007-11-06.
9. ^ Rear Admiral J.C McGarrah (29 September 2004). Appointment of Combatant Status Review Tribunal 12. OARDEC. Retrieved on 2007-11-06.
10. ^ ^{a b} Abdul Majid Muhammed v. George W. Bush. United States Department of Defense (16 August 2005). Retrieved on 2007-11-06.
11. ^ Spc Timothy Book. "Review process unprecedented", JTF-GTMO Public Affairs Office, Friday March 10, 2006, pp. pg 1. Retrieved on 2007-10-10. 
12. ^ Army Sgt. Sarah Stannard. "OARDEC provides recommendations to Deputy Secretary of Defense", JTF Guantanamo Public Affairs, October 29, 2007. Retrieved on 2008-03-26. 
13. ^ OARDEC (12 August 2005). Unclassified Summary of Evidence for Administrative Review Board in the case of Mujahid, Abdul Majid pages 6-7. United States Department of Defense. Retrieved on 2007-11-06.
14. ^ OARDEC (date redacted). Summary of Administrative Review Board Proceedings of ISN 555 pages 90-97. United States Department of Defense. Retrieved on 2008-03-28.
15. ^ "US releases Guantanamo files", The Age, April 4, 2006. Retrieved on 2008-03-15. 
16. ^ OARDEC (August 19, 2005). Administrative Review Board assessment and recommendation ICO ISN 555 (Iran). United States Department of Defense. Retrieved on 2007-11-06.
17. ^ ^{a b} OARDEC (August 19, 2005). Classified record of proceedings and basis for Administrative Review Board decision for ISN 555 11-15. United States Department of Defense. Retrieved on 2007-11-06.