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| Hearing: Murat Kurnaz (l.) talked to lawmakers (top right) via videolink from Bremen, Germany. Haraz N. Ghanbari/AP |
Guantánamo ex-detainee tells Congress of abuse
Murat Kurnaz, who testified in a landmark hearing Tuesday, says he spent days chained to the ceiling of an airplane hanger. He was determined innocent in 2002, but held until 2006.
from the May 22, 2008 edition
Page 3 of 3
Pentagon support for his detention
US District Judge Joyce Hens Green, who delivered a 2005 ruling on Kurnaz's claim, and those of 62 other prisoners challenging the legality of the Combatant Status Review Tribunals, found that Kurnaz's case was an illustration of the "fundamental unfairness" of the system, particularly its reliance on "classified information not disclosed to the detainees." (Much of the ruling was itself was classified until recently.)
Kurnaz was finally released in August 2006 after Angela Merkel took over as German chancellor and personally pressed his case with President Bush.
The Pentagon maintains that it was justified in holding Kurnaz. "We have a significant amount of information, both classified and declassified to support his detention," Commander Gordon said. Noting that many of the documents related to Kurnaz's case are heavily redacted, he added, "It would be misguided to draw a whole picture based on bits and pieces of information."
But members of the House Foreign Affairs subcommittee, which hosted Tuesday's hearing, are calling for an investigation.
Key exhibit in Supreme Court review
While Kurnaz's case has only recently gained wide attention in the US, he has long been a household name in Europe, particularly in Germany, where – as in many other nations – there are deep misgivings about Guantánamo.
A 25-country poll by the BBC World Service and GlobeScan found that 69 percent disapprove of the prison and of US treatment of detainees.
A growing number of US lawmakers have been calling for the camp to be shut down. Opponents warn that doing so could return terrorists to the battlefield.
The outcome of the debate may hinge, in large part, on the findings of the Supreme Court, which is currently weighing a challenge to the legality of the Guantánamo Tribunals – a case in which Kurnaz is emerging as a key exhibit.
The former detainee hopes his testimony on Capitol Hill will help tip the scales. "I hope they will take it seriously and close the place down," he told the Monitor.
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