Semiannually, the Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI) publishes an unclassified "Summary of the Reengagement of Detainees Formerly Held at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba" (Reengagement Report). According to ODNI's most recent Reengagement Report,[1] since 2009, when current rules and processes governing transfer of detainees out of Guantanamo were put in place, ODNI assess that 5.1% of detainees – 10 men total, 2 of whom are deceased – are more likely than not to have reengaged in terrorist activities.
Once every six months, the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI) – in consultation with the Director of the Central Intelligence Agency and the Secretary of Defense – is required to make public an unclassified "Summary of the Reengagement of Detainees Formerly Held at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba" (Reengagement Report). ODNI's Reengagement Reports break down all transfers from Guantanamo by Presidential administration under which they occurred, and categorize them according to whether ODNI assesses a former detainee to be "confirmed" or "suspected" of "reengaging" in "terrorist activities" (as those terms are defined in the reports).
The standard for inclusion in the "confirmed" category is "a preponderance of information which identifies a specific former Guantanamo detainee as directly involved in terrorist or insurgent activities." In other words, ODNI considers reengagement "confirmed" if it is more likely than not – i.e., there is at least a 51% chance – that a former detainee is directly involved in terrorist activities. For inclusion in the "suspected" category, ODNI need only find that there is "[p]lausible but unverified or single-source reporting indicating a specific former GTMO detainee is directly involved in terrorist or insurgent activities."
DNI's most recent Reengagement Report was declassified in December 2020 and made public on April 5, 2021.[1] As of this report, 729 detainees had been transferred out of Guantanamo since the prison opened in 2002. According to ODNI, 125 of them were "confirmed of reengaging" (14.3%) and 104 "suspected of reengaging" (17.1%). However, the vast majority of those transfers (115 of them) occurred pre-2009, before current rules and processes governing transfers were put in place. After 2009—when transfers have been subject to the rules and processes that remain in place today—the reengagement rates have dropped significantly, to 5.1% ("confirmed of reengaging") and 10.2% (suspected of reengaging"), respectively. The 5.1% statistic represents 10 men total, 2 of whom are deceased.
History
As early as 2004, the US government claimed that detainees released from Guantanamo Bay detainment camp had returned to the battlefield.[2] Initially, government spokesmen claimed relatively small numbers of former Guantanamo captives had returned to the battlefield. In a press briefing on March 6, 2007, a "Senior Defense official" commented:[3]
I can tell you that we have confirmed 12 individuals have returned to the fight, and we have strong evidence that about another dozen have returned to the fight.
On Monday, May 14, 2007, Pentagon officials Joseph Benkert and Jeffrey Gordon repeated the assertion that thirty former captives had returned to the battlefield in testimony before the United States Congress.[4]
They identified six of the thirty by name.[5]
They offered the names of the three men previously identified: "Mullah Shahzada"; "Maulavi Abdul Ghaffar"; and Abdullah Mahsud. They tied "Mullah Shahzada" to Mohamed Yusif Yaqub, a Guantanamo captive who was listed on the official list.[6] The other three names they offered were: Mohammed Ismail; Abdul Rahman Noor; and Mohammed Nayim Farouq.[5]
On July 12, 2007, the Department of Defense placed an additional page on their site, entitled: "Former Guantanamo Detainees who have returned to the fight".[7]
This list contained one additional name, not on the list released on May 14, 2007, for a total of seven names. The new name was Ruslan Odizhev, a Russian who Russian police reported died while resisting arrest on June 27, 2007.[8]
On 13 January 2009, the Pentagon said that 18 former detainees are confirmed to have participated in attacks, and 43 are suspected to have been involved in attacks.[9] A spokesman said evidence of someone being "confirmed" could include fingerprints, a conclusive photograph or "well-corroborated intelligence reporting." He said the Pentagon would not discuss how the statistics were derived because of security concerns. National security expert and CNN analyst Peter Bergen, stated that some of those "suspected" to have returned to terrorism are so categorized because they publicly made anti-American statements, "something that's not surprising if you've been locked up in a U.S. prison camp for several years." If all on the "confirmed" list have indeed returned to the battlefield, that would amount to 4 percent of the detainees who have been released at that time.[10]
According to the Office of the Director of National Intelligence, through December 2020, 14.5% of detainees transferred since 2002 are "confirmed of reengaging" in terrorist activities and 17.1% "suspected of reengaging" (see background section above for definitions of these terms and additional explanation). Since 2009—when current rules and processes governing transfers were implemented—the reengagement rates assessed by ODNI have dropped significantly, to 5.1% ("confirmed of reengaging") and 10.2% (suspected of reengaging"), respectively. The 5.1% statistic represents 10 men total, 2 of whom are deceased.
Had been a senior Taliban military leader prior to capture.
Captured in Afghanistan in December 2001, was one of the twenty-three prisoners released from Camp Delta in late January 2004. After his release, he joined the remnants of the Taliban and was killed in a gunfight on September 26, 2004.[13][14][15][16][17]
The official list of Guantanamo captives included two men with the same name, who remained in custody years after Maulvi Abdul Ghaffar had been reported to have been released, and killed in combat.[6]
Reportedly captured in Afghanistan in December 2001 after surrendering to Abdul Rashid Dostum.
That he was ever been captured, and sent to Guantanamo has been challenged.[18]
Allegedly masterminded the kidnapping of two Chinese engineers in Pakistan's South Waziristan region.
Allegedly returning to his position as an Al-Qaeda field commander.[15] One of the Chinese engineers died during a rescue mission, the other was rescued.[19]
Mehsud also claimed responsibility for the bombing at Islamabad's Marriott Hotel in October 2004. The blast injured seven people, including a U.S. diplomat, two Italians and the Pakistani prime minister's chief security officer. Mehsud was subsequently reported to have been killed in combat.
Ibrahim Shafir Sen was transferred to Turkey in November 2003.[22] In January 2008, Sen was arrested in Van, Turkey, and charged as the leader of an active al-Qaida cell.
Reports of the release, return to the battlefield, and subsequent death in combat of Mullah Shahzada, while reported in the press, is always attributed to unnamed insiders.[27][28][29][30][31][32][33][34]
The official list of Guantanamo captives included a man the same name, HajiShahzada who remained in custody years after the stories that Mullah Shahzada had been reported to have been released, and killed in combat. Haji Shahzada was one of the 38 captives whose Combatant Status Review Tribunal determined they had not been an enemy combatant in the first place.
On Monday, May 14, 2007, Pentagon officials, for the first time, tied the reports that "Mullah Shahzada" had returned to the battlefield to the name of one of the captives on the official list of Guantanamo captives, Mohammed Yusif Yaqub.[5] According to Reuters summary of their testimony:
"Released May 8, 2003, he assumed control of Taliban operations in Southern Afghanistan and died fighting U.S. forces on May 7, 2004."
First identified as a former captive who had returned to the battlefield in Testimony before Congress on Monday May 14, 2007.[5] According to Reuters summary of their testimony:
"Released from Guantanamo in early 2004, he was recaptured four months later in May while participating in an attack on U.S. forces near Kandahar. When captured, Ismail carried a letter confirming his status as a Taliban member in good standing."
First identified as a former captive who had returned to the battlefield in Testimony before Congress on Monday May 14, 2007.[5] According to Reuters summary of their testimony:
"Released in July 2003, he has since participated in fighting against U.S. forces near Kandahar. After his release, he was identified as the man described in an October 7, 2001, interview with Al Jazeera television as the "deputy defense minister of the Taliban."
First identified as a former captive who had returned to the battlefield in Testimony before Congress on Monday, May 14, 2007.[5] According to Reuters summary of their testimony:
Released from U.S. custody in July 2003, he quickly renewed his association with Taliban and al Qaeda members and has since become "reinvolved in anti-coalition militant activity."
930
Mohammed Ismail Agha
One of the three children who was held for a two years, in Camp Iguana, and released on January 29, 2004. He was reported by the Pentagon as having been captured in an attack on U.S. forces four months later.[35]
2009 reports
Department of Defense spokesmen claimed in January 2009 that at least 61 former captives had returned to the fight.
But they did not publish any of the men's names.
Saudi list
On February 3, 2009, the government of Saudi Arabia published a list of 85 most wanted suspected terrorists that included two former Guantanamo captives who had appeared in an alarming video, and nine other former captives.
BBC report
On February 18, 2009, the BBC News reported that UK officials had told them that an Afghan former captive repatriated in the Spring of 2008 had risen to a high-ranking position in the Taliban, in Pakistan, following his return. The BBC reports they had been told his name was MullahAbdul Kayum Sakir. The USA did not list any captives with names close to Abdul Kayum Sakir.
The five captives repatriated on April 30, 2008, are:
Nasrullah,
Esmatulla,
Rahmatullah Sangaryar,
Sahib Rohullah Wakil, and Abdullah Mohammad Khan.
Department of Defense
In March 2009, U.S. officials revealed that Abdullah Ghulam Rasoul (detainee #8) is now leading the Taliban's operations in southern Afghanistan.[36][37]
The May 2009 "one in seven" claims
On May 21, 2009, Elizabeth Bumiller, writing in The New York Times, reported that they had secured access to an unreleased Pentagon report that asserted "one in seven" former captives "are engaged in terrorism or militant activity."[38][39][40]
According to The New York Times Pentagon officials had asserted 74 former captives had returned to terrorism, and had named 29 individuals, including 16 previously unpublished ones. The New York Times chose to publish only 15 of those 16 names because of discrepancies concerning the 16th.[38]
On June 6, 2009 Clark Hoyt, whose byline lists him as The New York Times "public editor" wrote an apology to The New York Times readers for Bumiller's article.[41][42][43]
Fifteen former captives as reported by the New York Times[39]
A false name used by Abdul Qayyum Zakir, a senior commander in the Taliban.
British officials believed Rasoul became the Taliban's operations commander in southern Afghanistan soon after his release and blamed him for masterminding an increase in roadside attacks against British and American troops.[44]
The New York Times reported that Rasoul led a December 2008-January 2009 delegation to the Pakistani Taliban to convince them to refocus their efforts away from the Pakistani government and towards the American-led forces in Afghanistan.[45]
Was an athlete who fled persecution in Russia when he was a teenager.
Was captured in 2006 following an attack on Russian government facilities in October 2005.[46][47][48][49][50]
His family reports that his stay in Afghanistan and Guantanamo had left him with serious health problems, and that he was at home, under his mother's care, at the time of the attack.
Knew the three men who died in the camp on June 10, 2006.[52] He expressed skepticism about the official version, and questioned the credibility of the allegations against them.
In October 2008 Saudi authorities apprehended and detained al Noaimi when he was on a visit to Saudi Arabia.[53]
Saudi authorities continue to hold him—without charge.[54][55][56]
Unexpectedly left Saudi Arabia without government permission in December 2008.
Appeared in a threatening video published by al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula in January 2009, where he was described as the group's second in command.
Faced charges in Kuwait following his repatriation on November 4, 2005.[65] The charges were based on evidence supplied by the USA that he had ties to Al Wafa.[66][67] The Kuwaiti court acquitted Al Azmi.
Member of Jama'at-ud-Da'wah Pakistan, a group created in 1985 to fight the Soviet occupation. Although designated a terrorist organization in 2008 by the State Department, it is not on any of the official U.S. watchlists as it has worked as a charity with no military wing since 1991.
Arrested in August 2002 after an informer claimed he had helped members of al Qaida escape from Kunar. The Afghanistan government believes the head of the rival Mushwani tribe had turned Wakil in because the Mushwani tribe opposed a poppy eradication program that Wakil had begun in Kunar.
Released in April 2008. Upon his release Wakil met with President Hamid Karzai who apologized for his detention.
Currently a tribal elder representing Kunar province in the Afghanistan government.[69]
On May 27, 2009, the Defense Intelligence Agency published a "fact sheet" Former Guantanamo Detainee Terrorism Trends that contained a Partial Listing of Former GTMO Detainees Who have Reengaged in Terrorism.[71] Although it was published on May 27, it bears the date April 7, 2009.
Appendix A: Partial Listing of Former GTMO Detainees Who have Reengaged in Terrorism[71]
Abu-Zakariya al-Britani, also known as Jamal Udeen Al-Harith, murdered a number of Iraqi soldiers and killed himself via murder-bombing in 2017.[72] The BBC reported that Tony Blair personally was involved with getting Abu-Zakariya freed from Guantanamo in 2004.[73][74] The UK government paid $1 million as compensation to Abu-Zakariya al-Britani for his stay at Guantanamo.[75]
In August 2011 UK captiveTarek Dergoul got into a scuffle with a parking official, who was giving his car a ticket at an expired parking meter.[76]
He received a one-year conditional sentence, and had to undergo a mental health assessment.
Benjamin Wittes, a legal scholar who focuses on counter-terrorism issues, referred to the issue of competing assessment as to what percentage of former Guantanamo captives should be considered Guantanamo recidivists, when he asked whether Dergoul's conviction would make him a recidivist.[77]
^
John J. Lumpkin (2004-10-18). "7 ex-detainees return to fighting: Guantanamo release process called imperfect". Boston Globe. Archived from the original on 2006-03-30. One of the two former prisoners killed is Maulvi Abdul Ghaffar, a senior Taliban commander in northern Afghanistan who was arrested about two months after a US-led coalition drove the militia from power in late 2001. He was held at Guantanamo for eight months, then released, and was killed Sept. 26 by Afghan security forces during a raid in Uruzgan Province. Afghan leaders said they thought he was leading Taliban forces in the southern province.
^Craig Whitlock (2006-01-30). "Al Qaeda Detainee's Mysterious Release: Moroccan Spoke Of Aiding Bin Laden During 2001 Escape". Washington Post. p. A01. Archived from the original on 2008-07-26. Retrieved 2008-03-03. Moroccan interrogators visited Tabarak and other Moroccan detainees at Guantanamo on two occasions and urged them to cooperate, according to his attorney and two fellow prisoners. 'They came to see us and brought us coffee and sandwiches,' said Mohammed Mazouz, one of the Moroccans who was later released with Tabarak. 'But the Americans, they would just abuse us.'
^"British IS bomber 'didn't deserve compensation'". BBC. Archived from the original on 2017-02-25. Retrieved 26 February 2017. Jamal al-Harith reportedly received £1m from the British government after being freed from Guantanamo Bay in 2004.
^
Benjamin Wittes (2012-03-05). "Does this Count as Guantanamo Recidivism?". Lawfare. Archived from the original on 2013-06-17. Retrieved 2013-04-21. From London24, which bills itself as "London for Londoners," we learn that "Ex-Guantanamo Detainee from East Ham Attacked Traffic Warden":
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