Zakirjan Asam

Infobox WoT detainees
subject_name = Zakirjan Asam

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image_size =
image_caption = | date_of_birth = Birth date|1975|05|18
place_of_birth = Saratov, Russia
date_of_arrest =
place_of_arrest= | arresting_authority=
date_of_release = | place_of_release=
date_of_death = | place_of_death =
citizenship = | detained_at = Guantanamo
id_number = 672
group =
alias = Zakirjan Hassan,
Zakirjan Hasam
charge = no charge, held in extrajudicial detention
penalty =
status = Determined not have been an enemy combatant.
csrt_summary =
csrt_transcript=
occupation = | spouse = | parents = | children =

Zakirjan Asam "(also transliterated as Zakirjan Hassan)" is a citizen of Uzbekistan, held in extrajudicial detention in the United States Guantanamo Bay detention camps, in Cuba.cite web
url=http://www.dod.mil/news/May2006/d20060515%20List.pdf
title=List of Individuals Detained by the Department of Defense at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba from January 2002 through May 15, 2006
author=OARDEC
publisher=United States Department of Defense
date=May 15 2006
accessdate=2007-09-29] His Guantanamo Internee Security Number is 672.The Department of Defense reports that Asam was born on May 18 1975, in Saratov, Russia.

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 2007
accessdate=2007-09-22] ]

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.

ummary of Evidence memo

A Summary of Evidence memo was prepared for Zakirjan Asam'sCombatant Status Review Tribunal, on 6 December 2004.cite web
url=http://www.dod.mil/pubs/foi/detainees/csrt_arb/000500-000599.pdf#35
title=Summary of Evidence for Combatant Status Review Tribunal -- Asam, Zakirjan
date=6 December 2004
pages=page 35
author=OARDEC
publisher=United States Department of Defense
accessdate=2008-05-25] The memo listed the following allegations against him:

:"'A. The detainee is associated with forces that are engaged in hostilities against the United States or its coalition partners.:#The detainee traveled from Tajikistan to Afghanistan in the spring of 2001.:#The detainee is a member of the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan (IMU).:#The IMU is listed in the U.S. Department of Homeland Security Terrorist Organization Reference Guide as having ties with the Taliban.:#The detainee is acquainted with two individuals who hold leadership roles in the IMU.:#The detainee was at Mazar-e-Sharif sic, Afghanistan, when the U.S. bombing campaign began.:#The detainee has ties to Muslims in the Sink'Iang sic Province of China.:#The detainee fled to the mountains when the U.S. bombing campaign started.:#The detainee was captured by the Northern Alliance in the mountains.:#The detainee was captured a second time and turned over to U.S. forces.

Transcript

Asam chose to participate in his Combatant Status Review Tribunal. cite web
url=http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/nation/specials/guantanamo/ZakerjainHassan.pdf#1
title=Summarized Statement
date=date redacted
pages=pages 1-14
author=OARDEC
publisher=United States Department of Defense
accessdate=2008-05-25 [http://www.defenselink.mil/pubs/foi/detainees/csrt/Set_29_2001-2047.pdf mirror - pages 1-14] ] On March 3 2006, in response to a court order from Jed Rakoff the Department of Defense published a fourteen page summarized transcript from his Combatant Status Review Tribunal.cite news
url=http://www.theage.com.au/news/World/US-releases-Guantanamo-files/2006/04/04/1143916500334.html
title=US releases Guantanamo files
publisher=The Age
date=April 4, 2006
accessdate=2008-03-15
quote=]

Testimony

Azam said he was "sent" by special forces from Kazakhstan to Tajikistan.

Azam said he had not even heard of the IMU prior to his arrival in Guantanamo. He heard about the IMU from two of his fellow detainees. He said this in answer to one of his interrogators questions. He believes that the allegation that he knew two people who held leadership roles in the IMU may have been due to a problem in translating this answer.

Azam denied being at Mazari Sharif when the U.S. bombing campaign started. He said he had never been to Mazari Sharif.

Azam said he had never heard of Sink'Iangsic.

Azam denied being captured by the Northern Alliance. He said associates demanded a bribe or they would turn him over to the Americans for a bounty.Everyone knew that the Americans would pay a bounty for any foreigner.

Determined not to have been an Enemy Combatant

The Washington Post reports that Asam was one of 38 detainees who was determined not to have been an enemy combatant during his Combatant Status Review Tribunal. [http://projects.washingtonpost.com/guantanamo/nlec/ Guantanamo Bay Detainees Classifed as "No Longer Enemy Combatants"] , "Washington Post"] They report that Asam remains in detention. They report his nationality as Russian.The Department of Defense refers to these men as No Longer Enemy Combatants.

The Ottawa Citizen speculates that Asam may be one of a select number of detainees under consideration for an offer of Asylum. [http://www.canada.com/components/print.aspx?id=9924e200-a3d9-4fcd-8331-0c3dc9fc95f7&k=66684 U.S. detainees eye Canada as new home: Cleared of links to terrorism, many Guantanamo inmates fear returning to homelands] , "Ottawa Citizen", June 14 2006]

Celikgogus v. Rumsfeld

Zakirjan Asam is one of the five plaintiffs in Celikgogus v. Rumsfeld.

References