Before 2001, Abdullah Salih al Ajmi was a low-level volunteer in the Kuwaiti military, where among other tasks, he had responsibility for a mid-level al Quaeda kin (who was on the) various security's hot list. Possibly the slow pace of beheadings scared him; could the reward for a drawn-out martyrdom be limited only to grand-mother-age virgins? For whatever reason, sometime before September 11th, al Amji deserted the Kuwaiti military service, joining instead the Taliban fighters in Afghanistan. The Taliban gave al Ajmi an AK-47 and hand grenades, but don't normally deploy military uniforms or wear insignia of rank.
In mid-2004, al Ajmi was found to be an "enemy combatant." But about the same time, al Ajmi started his make-over from war-criminal to justice-seaker, to non-violent poet. First, he claimed he went to Afghanistan "to study the Quran" not to fight Americans and other Muslims] [unclear whether such studies were cleared with his Kawuati officers] He suddenly claimed to be a victim of torture. In short, al Ajmi rapidly became another Git'mo cause celeb among the left, which, per force, entitles one to a battery of high-powered lawyers. One of his counsel read al Ajmi's poetry at a 2006 anti-Gitmo "teach-in" held at Seton Hall University. al Ajmi's lead counsel took the detainees case as far as it could go; the same summer of the status hearing, al Ajmi was among 14 detainees afforded the right to a hearing by the SCOTUS the Supreme Court's Rasul ruling.
Instead of holding a hearing, and without explanation, the government transferred al Ajmi to Kuwati authorities in late 2005. In July 2006, Kuwaiti courts acquitted and released him. According to a Sunni fundamentalist from Kuwait who has been linked by the United Nations and the United States to al-Qaida, al Ajmi and two others left Kuwait early this year "only after a martyrdom operation was prepared for them in agreement with coordinators" in Iraq.
On March 23rd, a suicide bomber killed 12, and wounded 42, Iraqi soldiers at an army outpost in western Mosul. A recent al Qaeda propaganda tape credits al Ajmi with the attack. (A report in May fingering al Ajmi with another bombing in April apparently was wrong.) As Rusty Shackleford reports, given the appearance of a U-Tube martyrdom video, al Ajmi apparently got his wish.
Lefties immediately identified the culprit: America. "This is what we create with torture and no due process," claimed The Zoo blog. Kenneth Roth, executive director of Human Rights Watch, says "I assure you that US misconduct in Guantanamo has generated far more terrorists than the release of detainees have." So, did Git'mo create a terrorist? Hardly: al Ajmi previously said he was searching for "a way to reconnect with the jihad."
According to the DoD, al Ajim is the 37th released detainee "confirmed or suspected" to have returned to terrorism. Yet, Senators McCain and Obama each vow to close Guantanamo. Does that mean mass-emancipation? US soldiers simply could shoot unlawful combatants encountered on the battlefield. Assuming we decide against that approach, what's the next best option? Other nations face similar issues (albeit smaller scope).
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MaxedOutMama in comments:
I was searching for info on recidivism rates recently, and ran into a BBC article in which a Saudi was quoted as touting their wonderful rehab program - only 5-7% recidivism, whereas this Saudi said the famed Yemeni program was generating very high rates of recidivism nearly 70%. BBC article.The "best quick evidence" (Assistant Village Idiot's words) that the best weapon against anti-anti terrorism is facts.
The numbers given out by DoD are less than 10%, so it may well be that Gitmo is quite efficacious at restraining jihad.
(via Combs Spouts Off)
6 comments:
This leaves me sick to my stomach.
I am almost speechless. We're committing a form of suicide.
Loss for words.....
Carl, I was searching for info on recidivism rates recently, and ran into a BBC article in which a Saudi was quoted as touting their wonderful rehab program - only 5-7% recidivism, whereas this Saudi said the famed Yemeni program was generating very high rates of recidivism nearly 70%. BBC article.
The numbers given out by DoD are less than 10%, so it may well be that Gitmo is quite efficacious at restraining jihad. In any case, one cannot fairly state that it is causing terrorism if the home countries are seeing worse results.
Also, recidivism rates grow with time, and the Saudi effort was more recently initiated, so their rate will likely grow.
maxedoutmama, that is very interesting comparison and the best quick evidence I have seen.
On the other hand, AVI, it is really depressing when one considers the overall picture. If Muslims themselves can't talk these guys off the suicidal jihad bus, then we are not going to do any better.
The Saudis have really tried. They stopped the mosque collections to stop terrorist funding, for example. They have tried to crack down on all the imams. They are even considering revising their education curriculum, and they are conducting a campaign to move the foreign guest workers out and get native Saudis to actually work at jobs.
I had previously read several laudatory articles about the Yemen program, so I found the Saudi update interesting to say the least.
Of course, most Arab countries simply jail the people who are picked up in Iraq or Afghanistan by the Coalition and then returned to their countries of origin. Lovely jails, too. Really clean and respectful of human rights, those jails are. Beatings not more than twice weekly, and in some of them they let you out to seek medical treatment if you are about to die.
Those who are squawking about Gitmo ought to at least think ONCE. Fat chance, huh?
> Those who are squawking about Gitmo ought to at least think ONCE. Fat chance, huh?
Mr. Creosote comes to mind.
MaxedOutMama said...
"If Muslims themselves can't talk these guys off the suicidal jihad bus, then we are not going to do any better."
Why aren't the terrorists referred to as "HOMICIDAL" instead of "SUICIDAL"? After all their primary goal is to murder people who have the bravery and freedom to believe what they believe, instead of marching in lock-step with the maniacal Islamic ancestors that brainwashed them starting from their birth.
"The Saudis have really tried. They stopped the mosque collections to stop terrorist funding, for example. They have tried to crack down on all the imams. They are even considering revising their education curriculum, and they are conducting a campaign to move the foreign guest workers out and get native Saudis to actually work at jobs."
Sure the Saudis are trying. Now they are training terrorists at their academy in Fairfax, Virginia. Having been caught at teaching the barbaric techniques of "jihad," they made small efforts to remove the teaching hatred and murder of people who believe in other religions and techniques of cutting off legs and arms of people who think for themselves instead of obeying the Koranic line. It says in the Koran that it is okay to lie if you lie for "Allah."
Naivete will not save us from the insane, brainwashed terrorists who continue their insane behavior and brainwashing of the young.
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