Faizal Saha Al Nasir

Faizal Saha Al Nasir (born 1980) is a citizen of Saudi Arabia, held in extrajudicial detention in the United States Guantanamo Bay detention camps, in Cuba. [http://www.dod.mil/news/May2006/d20060515%20List.pdf list of prisoners (.pdf)] , "US Department of Defense", May 15 2006] Al Nasir's Guantanamo Internee Security Number is 437.American intelligence analysts estimate Al Nasir was born in 1980 in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

Identity

The official documents from the US Department of Defense, and from the Royal Embassy of Saudi Arabia, Washington DC transliterate Al Nasir's name differently:
* His name was transliterated as Faizal Saha Al Nasir on the DoD's official lists. [http://www.dod.mil/news/May2006/d20060515%20List.pdf list of prisoners (.pdf)] , "US Department of Defense", May 15 2006]
* His name was transliterated as Faisal Salih Bireikan Al-Nasser on the press releases from Saudi officials, when he was repatriated on February 21 2007.cite web
url=http://saudiembassy.net/2007News/News/RelDetail.asp?cIndex=6922
date=February 21 2007
title=Seven Saudi Guantanamo detainees return to the Kingdom
publisher=Royal Embassy of Saudi Arabia, Washington DC
accessdate=March 3
accessyear=2007] cite news
url=http://www.upi.com/SecurityTerrorism/view.php?StoryID=20070222-093416-6203r
title=Saudi terror suspects go home
date=February 22 2007
publisher=United Press International
accessdate=2007-03-03]

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 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 Nasir chose to participate in his Combatant Status Review Tribunal. [http://www.dod.mil/pubs/foi/detainees/csrt/Set_44_2922-3064.pdf#121 Summarized transcripts (.pdf)] , from Faizal Saha Al Nasir's "Combatant Status Review Tribunal" - pages 121-123]

Al Nasir's understanding of the CSRT procedure

Al Nasir's transcript begins with a note stating that he didn't understand the Combatant Status Review Tribunal procedure: "Specifically, the Detainee asked the Tribunal to clarify the difference between unclassified documents and classified documents."

Al Nasir's statement

During most Tribunals the detainee was invited to give a statement, or respond to the allegations against them, one at a time, or both. Al Nasir's transcript does not record him being offered this option.

During most Tribunals the allegations against the detainees were read aloud. And most of transcripts for those Tribunals recorded the allegations.

Al Nasir gave a statement. The transcript notes that the Recorder chose to summarize it. The summary they recorded was three sentences long::"I did not know that the Al-Farouq camp was a part of Al Qaida or associated with Al Qaida. I did not know they were against the United States, That is all I have."

His Personal Representative added that Al Nasir didn't fight, he only served as a border guard.

Testimony in response to Tribunal officer's questions

Al Nasir's Recorder only recorded Al Nasir being asked three questions:
*Al Nasir said he did not realize that he would be fighting with the Taliban. He thought he was only traveling there for training.
*Al Nasir confirmed that when he was a border guard he was a guard for the Taliban.
*Al Nasir confirmed when he was wounded he was with the Taliban.

Repatriation

Al Nasir was repatriated on February 21 2007, along with six other Saudis.The seven men were detained, without charge, in Hayer Prison, while Saudi justice officials determined whether they had violated any Saudi laws.cite news
publisher=Arab News
url=http://www.arabnews.com/?page=1&section=0&article=92646&d=24&m=2&y=2007&pix=kingdom.jpg&category=Kingdom
date= February 24 2007
title=Families Meet With Gitmo Returnees
author=P.K. Abdul Ghafour
accessdate=2007-03-03]

References