PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti (AP) – Fifteen prisoners at Guantanamo Bay have been released to the United Arab Emirates in the single largest transfer of detainees during the Obama administration.
The release of 12 Yemeni nationals and three Afghans comes amid a renewed push to whittle down the number of detainees held at the U.S. base in Cuba. The men have been cleared for transfer by U.S. government departments and agencies.
The Pentagon says 61 detainees remain at Guantanamo.
President Barack Obama has been seeking to close the detention center amid opposition from Congress.
Naureen Shah is Amnesty International USA’s director of national security and human rights. She says Monday’s transfers are a “powerful sign that President Obama is serious about closing Guantanamo before he leaves office.”
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Photo from Miami Herald, click here for more details.
ABC: The latest batch of released prisoners had mostly been held without charge for some 14 years at Guantanamo. They were cleared for release by the Periodic Review Board, comprised of representatives from six U.S. government agencies.
The UAE successfully resettled five detainees transferred there last year, according to the Pentagon.
Lee Wolosky, the State Department’s special envoy for Guantanamo’s closure, said the U.S. was grateful to the United Arab Emirates for accepting the latest group of 15 men and helping pave the way for the detention center’s closure.
“The continued operation of the detention facility weakens our national security by draining resources, damaging our relationships with key allies and partners, and emboldening violent extremists,” Wolosky said.
Obama has been seeking to close the detention center amid opposition from Congress, which has prohibited transferring detainees to the U.S. for any reason. The administration has been working with other countries to resettle detainees who have been cleared for transfer.
According to Amnesty, one of the Afghans released to the UAE alleged that he was “tortured and subjected to other cruel treatment” while in U.S. military custody. The man, identified only as Obaidullah, was captured by U.S. special forces in July 2002 and allegedly admitted to acquiring and planting anti-tank mines to target U.S. and other coalition forces in eastern Afghanistan.
In clearing him for transfer, the review board said he hasn’t expressed any anti-U.S. sentiment or intent to re-engage in militant activities. However, a Pentagon detainee profile also said he provided little information and they had little “insight into his current mindset.”
One of the Yemeni men sent to the UAE was identified as Zahir Umar Hamis bin Hamdun, who traveled to Afghanistan in 1999 and later apparently acted as a weapons and explosives trainer.
A Pentagon profile from September 2015 said he expressed dislike of the U.S., which they identified as “an emotion that probably is motivated more by frustration over his continuing detention than by a commitment to global jihad.”
***** One such detainee profile:
It is unlikely Hillary lied to the FBI during her three hour interview. Why? If she was asked easy questions including questions where she could claim no memory, then the entire interview was purely theater. It is important to note that the Director of the FBI, James Comey was not in attendance for this interview. It is stunning that a presidential candidate and a top government official was being interviewed and the FBI Director was not a participant. Why? Again, the questions were thin on substance and hardly probing and perhaps pre-planned. But Congress is about to have possession of the records.
His July 5 announcement – which led to the Department of Justice officially dropping the case – also resulted in Comey having to testify before Congress, which he did two days later.
There, he was asked about Clinton’s interview with the FBI.
Comey divulged that the three-hour interview hadn’t taken place under oath and thus no official transcript would be available.
Notes from the interview, however, existed and Republicans have been trying to get their hands on those for the past month. More here.
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Congress could get record of FBI’s Clinton interview over emails by this week
FNC: Some of the FBI files on the agency’s investigation into Hillary Clinton’s use of a private server exclusively for government business while serving as secretary of state could be given to a House oversight committee as early as this week, a congressional source confirmed with Fox News on Sunday.
The matter has been progressing since early July, when a formal request was made by Congress for the file, the remaining block appears to rest within the Justice Department.
The FBI, after interviewing Clinton last month, concluded its investigation of Clinton’s use of a private server, confirming publicly that 113 classified emails were sent and received by Clinton, as well as 2,000 that were classified after the fact.
FBI Director James Comey said investigators found at least three emails that contained classified markings, adding that the Democratic presidential nominee was “extremely careless.” However, he did not recommend criminal charges, and the Justice Department closed the case.
While Clinton has insisted nothing was marked classified at the time, the investigation found otherwise, with the emails containing a portion marking (C for confidential, the lowest level of classification). Fox News first reported that some of the emails were marked classified in June.
The Oversight Committee has formally asked if Clinton committed perjury during her Benghazi testimony in October 2015, because her statements to Congress appear to conflict with the FBI’s findings. Clinton has maintained she was truthful in her FBI interview.
Fox News is told that the FBI and Justice Department have confirmed the receipt of the committee’s request.
Congressional investigators — led by House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform Chairman GOP Rep. Jason Chaffetz of Utah — have been aggressively seeking the entire file, including a summary of Clinton’s interview, known as a “302.”
However, the document is considered highly classified, because Clinton’s FBI session included questions on the 22 top secret emails that are too damaging to national security to make public.
Note that, it is standard for FBI interviews not to be recorded, so there is no transcript, but agents take extensive notes and they form the basis for the written report known as the “302.”
The possible release of the file to congressional investigators was first reported by CNN.
The House Oversight Committee questioned Comey for over five hours in July after he said no reasonable prosecutor would pursue criminal charges.
Seems that John Kerry likely forced the department of the Navy to instructed the navy commander to apologize and to do so publically.
“I could not be and I know the president could not be prouder of our men and women in uniform,” he added. “I also want to thank the Iranian authorities for their cooperation and quick response.”
The sailors appear to have been “well taken care of,” Kerry insisted, adding that Iran gave them blankets and food as they were forced to wait overnight on a small island in the Persian Gulf. More here from TheHill.
Let the FOIA request firestorm begin.
Sailor who apologized to Iranian captors appeals punishment
FNC: The U.S. Navy lieutenant who apologized on video for “a mistake” while he and his crew were being held by Iranian captors in January is appealing his discipline for violating the service’s code of conduct, The Navy Times reported.
Lt. David Nartker was given a non-judicial punishment last week by the Navy Expeditionary Combat Command, two officials familiar with the proceeding told The Times. Narker appeared before Rear Adm. Frank Morneau on Aug. 4 to hear the charges against him, Stars and Stripes reported.
The exact punishment given to Nartker and the charges leveled against him have not yet been revealed. Stars and Stripes reported the punishments could range from confinement to his quarters to a letter of reprimand – which could be a career-ender.
Nartker was the most senior officer of 10 sailors manning a pair of boats captured by Iran after the U.S. vessels accidentally strayed into Iranian waters on Jan. 12. He was filmed apologizing for the incursion on a video that was later released by Iran.
“It was a mistake,” Nartker said on camera. “That was our fault. And we apologize for our mistake.”
The sailors were detained for one night before being released.
“Left to his own devices, [Nartker] emulated the poor leadership traits he witnessed first-hand within his own chain of command,” the Iran incident investigation report said.
The NECC would not comment on the specifics of the case.
“Following [non-judicial punishment] proceedings, members may appeal the findings to a higher authority,” Lt. Cmdr. Jen Cragg said in an email to The Navy Times. “The appeal authority may set aside the punishment, decrease its severity, or deny the appeal, but may not increase the severity of the punishment.”
U.S. Pacific Fleet in Hawaii has a 30-day period to review the appeal, Stars and Stripes reported.
Sylville Smith was fatally shot by police in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, leading to riots in the city’s North Side. (Facebook)
A 23-year-old black man armed with a stolen gun was fatally shot Saturday afternoon by police in Milwaukee during a foot pursuit, authorities say.
The man has been identified as Sylville Smith, police said. Smith was shot in the chest and arm, Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett said.
He fled from a car during a traffic stop Saturday about 2:30 p.m. in the Wisconsin city’s North Side, police said in a press release. He was chased by two officers and was shot during the foot pursuit, according to police.
Peaceful protests turned to violent unrest Saturday night. One police officer was hospitalized after a brick was thrown through his windshield. Three others were hospitalized with unspecified injuries, but all were released by Sunday morning. Six buildings and several vehicles were burned, including a police car. Seventeen arrests were made, officials said.
The scene was calm Sunday morning, with community members gathering to cleanup and hold a prayer service. Governor Scott Walker activated the state’s National Guard as a precaution. They will be available to assist police Sunday if needed.
The investigation into the shooting is being conducted by the Wisconsin Department of Justice’s Division of Criminal Investigation. The Milwaukee County District Attorney’s Office will then review the findings of that investigation.
The officer who shot Smith has been placed on administrative leave. His name has not been released, but police say he is a 24-year-old man who has been with the department for six years. He has worked as an officer for three years.
The officer is black, Police Chief Edward Flynn said Sunday at a press conference.
1. The Officers at the Scene of the Shooting Were Wearing Body Cameras, the Mayor Says
Milwaukee Police say the incident began when two uniformed officers stopped a car with two people inside in the 3200 block of North 44th Street about 3:30 p.m. Saturday.
“Shortly after stopping the suspects, both occupants fled from the car on foot. The officers pursued the suspects, and during the foot pursuit one officer shot one suspect, armed with a semiautomatic handgun,” police said in a press release.”
Sylville Smith died at the scene, police said.
The shooting happened in a yard in the 3200 block of North 44th Street, police said.
Police said the other suspect, who has not been named, was taken into custody and is facing charges.
Mayor Tom Barrett said the two officers involved in the chase and shooting were wearing body cameras, WISN-TV reports. The cameras were operational, Barrett said.
He said the officer ordered the man to drop his gun twice and then fired several times when he refused. Barrett said a photo from the body camera clearly shows Smith had the gun in his hand when he was killed.
2. A Loaded Gun Stolen From a Home During a Burglary Was Found After the Shooting
Police said the semiautomatic handgun recovered at the scene was stolen in a burglary from a home in Waukesha, Wisconsin, in March 2016. The burglary victim said 500 rounds of ammunition were also taken.
Mayor Tom Barrett told reporters the gun was loaded, according to The Associated Press.
“This stop took place because two officers … saw suspicious activity,” Barrett said. “There were 23 rounds in that gun that that officer was staring at. I want to make sure we don’t lose any police officers in this community, either.”
Milwaukee Police Assistant Chief Bill Jessup told the Journal Sentinel it has not been determined if the gun was pointed at the officer or if shots were fired by the suspect.
“That officer had to make a split-second decision when the person confronted him with a handgun,” Jessup said. “This is a risk they take every day on behalf of our community.”
The shooting came after five fatal shootings during a nine-hour stretch from Friday night to Saturday morning. It occurred just blocks from three of those homicides, police told the Journal Sentinel.
“As everyone knows, this was a very, very violent 24 hours in the city of Milwaukee,” Jessup said. “Our officers are out here taking risks on behalf of the community and making split-second decisions.”
3. Smith’s Criminal Record, Which Police Called ‘Lengthy,’ Included a Misdemeanor Conviction for Carrying a Concealed Weapon & Traffic Offenses
Police said in a press release that the 23-year-old man who was fatally shot had a “lengthy arrest record.”
A search of Wisconsin court records revealed several arrests, but only one misdemeanor conviction for Sylville Smith. His record also included traffic offenses. No felony convictions were found.
The misdemeanor conviction, for carrying a concealed weapon, came in July 2014. He pleaded guilty to the charge and was fined $443 and ordered to serve one day in jail.
His record also included guilty findings on traffic offenses for speeding, operating a motor vehicle without insurance, possession of open intoxicants in a motor vehicle and operating a motor vehicle with a suspended license.
Smith was arrested in 2015 on a charge of intimidating a witness by a person charged with a felony, which is itself a felony offense. The case was dropped later that year by the prosecutor.
He was also charged with first-degree recklessly endangering safety, a felony, and misdemeanor possession of THC earlier in 2015. Those charges were dismissed by a judge based on a motion by the defense.
According to the Journal Sentinel, both cases stemmed from a February 2015 shooting in which he was a suspect.
Smith was accused of calling his girlfriend from jail to tell her to call the victim in the shooting case to get him to fill out a sworn affidavit saying Smith didn’t commit the crime, according to court documents obtained by the Journal Sentinel.
The victim recanted his identification of Smith and the case was dropped after the victim did not show up to court and was uncooperative, the newspaper reports.
In 2013, Smith was charged with retail theft, but that case as also dropped by the prosecutor. Go here for more details, facts and videos from Heavy.