Abdel Ghalib Ahmad Hakim

Abdel Ghalib Ahmad Hakim is a citizen of Yemen, held in extrajudicial detention in the United States Guantanamo Bay detainment camps, in Cuba. Hakim's Guantanamo detainee ID number is 686. American intelligence analysts estimate Hakim was born 1979, in Ta'iz, Yemen.

Combatant Status Review Tribunal

Combatant Status Review Tribunals were held in a trailer the size of a large RV. The captive sat on a plastic garden chair, with his hands and feet shackled to a bolt in the floor. Three chairs were reserved for members of the press, but only 37 of the 574 Tribunals were observed.

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 a competent tribunal 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.

Hakim chose to participate in his Combatant Status Review Tribunal.

Evidence request

The Tribunal's President stated, for the record, that Hakim had not requested the testimony of any witnesses. But he did request exculpatory documents -- his passport and plane ticket. But they could not be located.

Hakim replied that he hadn't requested his passport, just his plane ticket.

Testimony

Hakim said he was a student, who had gone to Pakistan to study the Koran.

The transcript of Hakim’s Tribunal contained ten instances where he answered questions by saying the information was in his file, or expressing confusion, because the information was in his file, without understanding the explanation that the Tribunals never read any of the file, or anything beyond the unclassified summary of evidence, until after the detainee had a chance to present their testimony, or evidence they had.

Hakim said he was a student, who had gone to Pakistan to study the Koran.

Q:	If you were a student studying the Koran in Pakistan, how did you end up here?
A:	This is the question I always ask myself.. .why was I captured there, and why did they bring me here?
Q:	Could you please describe for us how it was that you were captured or arrested?
A:	My story is very obvious and in the file.
Q:	Well it's not obvious to us, which is why we were hoping you might help us understand what happened.
A:	If you want to see the whole thing, look in my file.

Hakim confirmed that he was captured by Pakistani officials.

Hakim confirmed that he was he was captured with other people.

One of the Tribunal members expressed skepticism that the Pakistani security officials would have arrested him, without telling him why. Hakim replied that he still didn’t know why he was arrested. He said every new interrogator he was interrogated by had a brand new set of false allegations.

Hakim said he spent months in detention in Pakistani custody, and then in American custody, in Kandahar and Bagram, prior to being transferred to Cuba. He said none of his interrogators had asked him questions that implied they thought he was affiliated with Al Qaida until after he came to Cuba.

Hakim confirmed that he had never traveled to Afghanistan.

The President of Hakim’s Tribunal expressed regret that Hakim did not take the opportunity to be more forthcoming about the details of his story.

Allegations

When Hakim was finished, his Personal Representative paraphrased the allegations against, and the responses he had offered during his interview with him:

a. -- The general summary of the allegations that establish an association with terrorism were missing from the transcript. --

1. “...trained at the al Farouq training camp.”
2. “...captured with ammunition.”
3. “...captured with other individuals.”
4. “...one of the individuals that were with him upon capture was associated with Al Qaida.”
5. “...is associated with Jama’at al-Tabligh
6. “...that Jama’at al-Tabligh is a missionary organization used as a cover to mask travel activities of terrorists to [sic] include [sic] members of Al Qaida.”

Responses Hakim had offered to his Personal Representative

• Hakim denied being associated with Al Qaida.
• Hakim denied training at Al Farouq. He had studied the Koran for five months in Lahore, and then went to Salafia University.
• Hakim confirmed he was captured with other individuals.
• Hakim responded to the allegations that one of his fellow captives was associated with al Qaida by stating he did not want the other detainees he was captured with as witnesses.
• Hakim confirmed he was familiar with Jama’at al-Tabligh. He said: “...he came to know them in Pakistan, that he did not join them, and that they showed him how to go from Yemen to Pakistan.”
• Hakim said he was unaware that Jama’at al-Tabligh had been used as a cover for Al Qaida.