Faris al-Ansari

Faris Muslim Al Ansari is a citizen of Afghanistan, held in extrajudicial detention in the United States Guantanamo Bay detainment camps, in Cuba. [http://www.dod.mil/news/May2006/d20060515%20List.pdf list of prisoners (.pdf)] , "US Department of Defense", May 15 2006] Al Ansari's Guantanamo detainee ID number is 253.American intelligence analysts estimate that Al Ansari was born in 1984 in Mukala, Yemen.

Combatant Status Review Tribunal

] Three chairs were reserved for members of the press, but only 37 of the 574 Tribunals were observed.cite web
url=http://www.defenselink.mil/transcripts/transcript.aspx?transcriptid=3902
title=Annual Administrative Review Boards for Enemy Combatants Held at Guantanamo Attributable to Senior Defense Officials
publisher=United States Department of Defense
date=March 6 date=December 2007

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 Ansari chose to participate in his Combatant Status Review Tribunal. [http://www.dod.mil/pubs/foi/detainees/csrt/Set_44_2922-3064.pdf#128 Summarized transcripts (.pdf)] , from Faris Muslim Al Ansari's "Combatant Status Review Tribunal" - pages 128-133]

allegations

The allegations Al Ansari faced during his Tribunal were: [http://www.dod.mil/pubs/foi/detainees/csrt/Set_44_2922-3064.pdf#128 Summarized transcripts (.pdf)] , from Faris Muslim Al Ansari's "Combatant Status Review Tribunal" - pages 128-133] :""'a. The detainee is a Taliban fighter.:#"The detainee lived with his family in Kabul, Afghanistan.:#"The detainee's home was given to his father by the Taliban.:#"The detainee's father was given rewards for his service to the Taliban.

:""'b. The detainee participated in military operations against the coalition.:#"The detainee fought in the Mehjin Region in Tora Bora.:#"While fighting in the Mehjin Region in Tora Bora, the detainee carried a Kalashnikov rifle and an RPG-7.:#"While engaged in commbat with the Northern Alliance, the detainee fired his Kalashnikov rifle and RPG-7.:#"The detainee was captured without identification as he attempted to flee into Afghanistan.

Response to the allegations

Al Ansari acknowledged that his father had fought in Afghanistan -- against the Soviets. His father was one of theforeign fighters who had come to Afghanistan to fight the Soviet occupiers during the time that the CIA was assisting the mujahidin. The Taliban showed him respect because of this.

However, Al Ansari's father never did any work for the Taliban. He never saw his father do any work at all. He didn't know how his father supported himself and his family, or who had paid for their home. He said it was not considered respectful, in his culture, for a son to question his father.

Al Ansari said before he was captured he had never heard of the RPG-7. His father owned an AK-47. But he kept it locked and Al Ansari had never been trained to use it, or even to handle it. He said he had never seen his father use it, and that all he knew about guns was that you pointed them and pulled the trigger.

Al Ansari said that after the attacks on America on September 11, 2001, when the USA counter-attacked, they started bombing all houses owned by Arabs, not just those who were affiliated with the terrorists. So his father decided it wasn't safe for his family to remain in Afghanistan. His father split his family up. His father traveled with his wives and younger children, by car. Since his father had fought in the war, he spoke Pashtu, and could pass for an Afghan. Al Ansari didn't speak much Pashtu, and was to travel overland with Arab friends of his father who had also participated in the struggle against the Soviet occupiers.

He described proceeding, on foot, on a long and arduous journey through isolated mountain passes. Eventually they arrived in a Pakistani village, where they were originally welcomed. But later the villagers grew aggressive, bound them, and turned them in.

Al Ansari acknowledged that he was captured without any identification papers. This was due to his age. He was too young to ever need any identification, like a driver's licence of a passport.

Al Ansari said he believed he knew the identity of one of the other detainees who had denounced him. He said that this man had converted from Muslim to Atheist during his imprisonment, and had leveled false allegations against him out of personal animosity.

Responses to the Tribunal's questions

In response to question from his Tribunal:
*Al Ansari testified his family was originally from Yemen.
*Al Ansari said he wasn't sure when his family moved to Afghanistan to join his father. He thought he might have been about four years old.
*His family had originally lived in Jalalabad, had lived in Kabul for a while, and had then returned to Jalalabad.
*Al Ansari acknowledged being aware that the Taliban were fighting a civil war with the Northern Alliance, but said he had never assisted them.
*Al Ansari testified that he and his companions weren't carrying any weapons while they traveled to Pakistan.
*Al Ansari confirmed he had never received any military training.

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.

The transcript from Al Ansari's Administrative Review Board hearing show he initially planned to participate in his hearing. [http://www.dod.mil/pubs/foi/detainees/csrt/ARB_Transcript_Set_5_20000-20254.pdf#253 Summarized transcript (.pdf)] , from Faris Muslim Al Ansari's "Administrative Review Board hearing" - page 253] However, he changed his mind when he asked his Assisting Military Officer, who would be attending the hearing.His Assisting Military Officer said he didn't tell him how many officers would be attending, but he confirmed for him that there wouldn't be any lawyers present.

The transcript records the Presiding Officer asking the Designated Military Officer about two individuals,named in the factors favoring Al Ansari's continued detention, who were both associated with guest houses in Kandahar, had similarly spelled names.One was named "Abu Kaloud" and the other was named "Abu Kalood Al Yemeni". The Designated Military Officersaid he "thought" they were the same individual, but he would have to double-check.

Al Ansari had tried to call for the testimony of an individual named Abu Jahad Al-Yemani during his Tribunal.

Current location

As of March 18 2008 the "Washington Post" lists Al Ansari as still in detention in Guantanamo.cite news
url=http://projects.washingtonpost.com/guantanamo/#afghanistan
title=Names of the Detained in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba
publisher=Washington Post
accessdate=2008-03-18
quote=]

References