Guantanamo Bay: Better Now?

Blog 12

Gina Ponzi
April 15, 2009
7:30 PM

An inmate in the Guantanamo prison camp has become the first prisoner allowed to give an interview from inside the camp, according to recent reports. The boy, Mohammad Al-Gharani, was 14 at the time of his capture in 2002; he was inside a mosque praying when he was arrested by Pakistani soldiers and later turned over to American forces. He became one of Guantanamo Bay’s first prisoners, and in his interview testified against the atrocities committed against him there. Al-Gharani claims that he was beaten with batons until his teeth chipped, and also tear gassed when he refused to come out of his cell. According to his report, he refusal to come out of his cell arose because he had “not been granted his rights,” which included interacting with fellow inmates and eating “normal food.”
A judge has recently ordered Al-Gharani’s release from prison, stating that the evidence presented against him was “unreliable” and unsubstantial. His primary indictments were based on the fact that he had stayed in an Al-Qaeda guest home, fought for Tora Bora, and served as a courier for a senior member of al-Qaeda. President Obama ordered the closing of Guantanamo bay after his inauguration, however, according to Al-Gharani’s reports, conditions for prisoners since its ordered closing have only worsened. During his 20 days of confinement after the inauguration, Al-Gharani was beaten daily, which was more frequent than before.
It is shocking and terrible to learn of such animalistic mistreatment of a boy who, because of petty accusations, had no guarantee of basic human rights. While it is important that we protect our country against terrorism and terrorists, I do not believe that our efforts to do so entitles our soldiers the right to commit individual atrocities in response.


http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/northamerica/usa/5157102/Guantanamo-inmate-is-first-to-speak-from-inside-camp.html