There is always the pledge or promise of something, money, weapons, fighter jets or people….some or all of this went with those ten detainees from Gitmo to Oman. Will the White House or the Pentagon tell us? Nah….
Barack Obama bragged that al Qaeda has been decimated but with this release and the growing threat of al Qaeda once again in Afghanistan, this is no longer the case.
In his final State of the Union address, President Barack Obama said the terrorist groups al-Qaeda and Islamic State pose a “direct threat” to Americans but don’t threaten “our national existence.”
“Both al-Qaeda and now ISIL pose a direct threat to our people, because in today’s world, even a handful of terrorists who place no value on human life, including their own, can do a lot of damage,” he said, referring to the Islamic State in Iraq or Syria, or ISIS, also known as ISIL. “They use the Internet to poison the minds of individuals inside our country; they undermine our allies.”
Hat tip to Zelin of Jihadology:
al Qaeda in the Magrib most recent message
New video message from Dr. Ayman al-Ẓawāhirī: “The Islamic Spring #8: The Sun of Victory Shines From Nusantara”
In part from FNC: The Omani Foreign Ministry reportedly described the move as a “temporary stay.” The administration is banned by law from transferring Guantanamo detainees to Yemen, given the risk in that country. Yemen is not only racked by civil war, but is the home of Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula. At least three previously released Guantanamo detainees have gone on to become leaders with AQAP in Yemen after leaving the camp.
The transfer also coincides with a recent weapons deal. The terms are classified, but the State Department a week ago approved the proposed sale of TOW 2B missiles and supporting equipment to the government of Oman – valued at about $51 million.
U.S. sends 10 Yemeni Guantanamo detainees to Oman
Reuters: Ten Yemeni men held at the Guantanamo Bay U.S. military prison were sent to Oman on Thursday, bringing the detainee population below the symbolically important milestone of 100 as President Barack Obama steps up efforts to close the facility before he leaves office.
Their transfer to the Gulf Arab state marked the largest group of prisoners shipped out of the detention center at the U.S. naval base at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, since Obama began his presidency in 2009 pledging to quickly shutter a prison that has drawn international condemnation.
The Yemenis, all held for more than a decade without charge or trial, were part of a wave of releases that the Obama administration signaled would take place early this year as it prepares to give Congress a plan for closing the facility. Four other detainees were moved out already this month.
Obama, whose term in office ends in January 2017, has vowed to push ahead with his efforts but faces opposition in the Republican-led Congress. Lawmakers have created obstacles to moving any Guantanamo prisoners to facilities in the United States.
In Oman’s, Muscat, an Omani official was cited by the state news agency as saying the Yemenis had arrived and would remain there for humanitarian reasons until conditions in Yemen, gripped by civil war, allow them to be sent home. Oman, a close U.S. ally, had accepted earlier groups of Guantanamo prisoners.
U.S. Defense Secretary Ash Carter said the transfer followed a “deliberate and careful review.”
“We completed the transfer of 10 Yemenis – roughly 10 percent, that is, of the total remaining Gitmo population – to the government of Oman,” Carter told an audience at the U.S. military’s Southern Command, which oversees the military detention facility.
The 93 prisoners remaining at Guantanamo mark the lowest number since 2002, shortly after then-President George W. Bush opened the facility to house foreign terrorism detainees after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks on the United States.
Obama administration officials have said they will focus on repatriating or resettling the 34 Guantanamo prisoners, most of them Yemenis, cleared for release long ago by U.S. authorities.
The United States has ruled out sending the Yemenis home due to Yemen’s chaotic security situation.
Obama campaigned for the presidency in 2008 vowing to close the Guantanamo prison. In his final State of the Union address on Tuesday, he again urged Congress to help him achieve that goal.
“It’s expensive, it’s unnecessary and it only serves as a recruitment brochure for our enemies,” Obama said of the prison.
The White House has not said that Obama could use executive powers to shut the prison, bypassing Congress. Some lawmakers have vowed legal action if he does that.
Carter said he had proposed to Obama establishing an alternative location that would bring some detainees – those deemed too dangerous to be transferred – “to an appropriate, secure location in the United States.”
“Congress has indicated a willingness to consider such a proposal,” Carter said.
The Pentagon, in a statement, named the released detainees as: Fahed Abdullah Ahmad Ghazi, Samir Naji al-Hasan Muqbil, Adham Mohamed Ali Awad, Mukhtar Yahya Naji al-Warafi, Abu Bakr Ibn Muhammad al-Ahdal, Muhammad Salih Husayn al-Shaykh, Muhammad Said Salim Bin Salman, Said Muhammad Salih Hatim, Umar Said Salim al-Dini and Fahmi Abdallah Ahmad Ubadi al-Tulaqi.
From the Department of Defense and shame on Secretary Ash Carter, at least former Secretary Chuck Hagel slow walked approvals, eventually costing him his job.
Detainee Transfers Announced
The Department of Defense announced today the transfer of Fahed Abdullah Ahmad Ghazi, Samir Naji al-Hasan Muqbil, Adham Mohamed Ali Awad, Mukhtar Yahya Naji al-Warafi, Abu Bakr Ibn Muhammad al-Ahdal, Muhammad Salih Husayn al-Shaykh, Muhammad Said Salim Bin Salman, Said Muhammad Salih Hatim, Umar Said Salim al-Dini, and Fahmi Abdallah Ahmad Ubadi al-Tulaqi from the detention facility at Guantanamo Bay to the Government of Oman. As directed by the president’s Jan. 22, 2009, executive order, the interagency Guantanamo Review Task Force conducted a comprehensive review of these cases. As a result of those reviews, which examined a number of factors, including security issues, Ghazi, Muqbil, Awad, al-Warafi, al-Ahdal, al-Shaykh, Salman, Hatim, al-Dini, and al-Tulaqi were unanimously approved for transfer by the six departments and agencies comprising the task force. In accordance with statutory requirements, the secretary of defense informed Congress of the United States’ intent to transfer these individuals and of the secretary’s determination that these transfers meet the statutory standard. The United States is grateful to the Government of Oman for its humanitarian gesture and willingness to support ongoing U.S. efforts to close the Guantanamo Bay detention facility. The United States coordinated with the Government of Oman to ensure these transfers took place consistent with appropriate security and humane treatment measures. Today, 93 detainees remain at Guantanamo Bay.
