The Gitmo Paradox: You Can’t Go Home, But You Can’t Stay Here

December 10, 2009  |  Posted by Danielle Belton

Last Thursday, Defense Secy. Robert Gates told a Senate hearing that 116 detainees in Guantanamo Bay were indentified for release. Right now there are 211 men being held, indefinitely, and the Defense Department being able to identify men for release will only speed up the process to close the prison. But when you're for keeping Gitmo open by any means necessary you'll play whatever card you can find.

Enter Sen. Jeff Sessions of Alabama. On Wednesday he called on Attorney General Eric Holder to stop sending detainees to Saudi Arabia because he's worried about the effectiveness of the Saudi's rehabilitation program. Even though our military has determined that these men aren't threats and that we have no reason, no right, to continue to hold them, Sen. Sessions is still looking for road blocks to throw up in the way, but the effectiveness of some intense counseling in Saudi Arabia is not a security question -- Gitmo is. It's a prime recruiting tool for al Qaeda as it flies in the face of long-held American values like justice and following the rule of law.

From FOXNews.com:

Sessions' office notes that about 120 detainees, many of neighboring Yemeni descent, have been sent to Saudi Arabia. Of that number, 108 have reportedly "graduated" and about 20 percent of that number have disappeared. The rest appear to be complying with the rules of rehabilitation.

Holder and Defense Secretary Robert Gates have both defended Saudi Arabia's program. Holder told the Senate Judiciary Committee in June that the program has been "pretty successful," and responded to Sessions' query last month that it "appears successful."

But despite reassurances from all around, Sen. Sessions doesn't trust the judgment of our Justice Department or our military. He'd rather keep men cleared for release in perpetuity than close Gitmo and work towards making America more secure. In reality, Sen. Sessions is proposing a continuation of our state of limbo for detainees -- where they can't go home, but they can't be tried in the U.S.

From Andy Worthington:

Being cleared for release means nothing if you remain locked up in Guantánamo forever, and unless the administration has some significant plan up its sleeve, the future of these men is bleak.

blog comments powered by Disqus