Biden Administration Releases Original Guantanamo Bay Detainee
The Defence Department has announced the release of Ridah Bin Saleh al-Yazidi from Guantanamo Bay, marking the fourth recent release of detainees under President Joe Biden’s governance. The Pentagon confirmed that al-Yazidi was sent back to his home country of Tunisia, with coordination involving defense Secretary lloyd Austin. Although cleared for transfer years ago, al-Yazidi had remained at Guantanamo due to delays in negotiations between the U.S. and Tunisian governments.
Al-Yazidi was captured in late 2001 near the Afghanistan border amidst U.S. military operations and arrived at Guantanamo on its opening day in 2002. Although previously deemed perilous, he faced no charges. As of now, 26 detainees remain at the facility, with 14 eligible for transfer. The ongoing operations at guantanamo have sparked discussions regarding the facility’s future, which previous administrations, including Barack Obama’s, have attempted to close without success.
Defense Department officials announced the release of Ridah Bin Saleh al-Yazidi from the Guantanamo Bay prison in Cuba, marking the fourth such action in the final weeks of President Joe Biden’s administration.
A statement from the Pentagon published Monday revealed that al-Yazidi was returned to his home country of Tunisia with the approval of Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin.
“On Jan. 31, 2024, Secretary of Defense Austin notified Congress of his intent to support this repatriation and, in consultation with our partner in Tunisia, we completed the requirements for responsible transfer,” the statement said.
The prisoner had been deemed “transfer-eligible by a rigorous interagency review process” established through a 2009 executive order, according to the Pentagon.
Al-Yazidi had not been charged with a crime and was cleared years ago for a return to Tunisia, but he had remained at Guantanamo Bay as the Tunisian and U.S. governments struggled to make a transfer deal, according to a report from The New York Times.
The detainee, who arrived at the prison on Jan. 11, 2002, its opening day, was secretly airlifted from the base and returned to Tunisia, according to the outlet.
Al-Yazidi had been captured near the border of Afghanistan at the end of 2001 with other men believed to have been fleeing from the battle of Tora Bora, which occurred at the final stages of the U.S. military invasion of Afghanistan.
Some of those detainees were suspected of working as bodyguards for Osama bin Laden.
A prison report leaked in 2007 described al-Yazidi as a dangerous prisoner who defaced a library book and threw a cup of tea at an American soldier, according to the Times.
Biden administration officials have now released four Guantanamo Bay prisoners in the span of two weeks. Those moves come as the outgoing commander in chief also commutes or nixes sentences for other individuals convicted of federal crimes, including his son, Hunter Biden.
“Today, 26 detainees remain at Guantanamo Bay,” the Pentagon announced in the statement, noting that “14 are eligible for transfer; 3 are eligible for a Periodic Review Board; 7 are involved in the military commissions process; and 2 detainees have been convicted and sentenced by military commissions.”
The only prisoner of the 20 original detainees at Guantanamo Bay who remains in the facility is Ali Hamza al-Bahlul, who is serving a life sentence after working as a media adviser for Bin Laden, according to the Times.
President Barack Obama expressed a desire to shutter Guantanamo Bay. It appears that Biden will also not accomplish that goal.
The prison has been operating for nearly a quarter of a century.
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