Global InformationShaker Aamer information
| Shaker Abd al-Rahim Muhammad Aamer | |
|---|---|
 Aamer in Guantanamo (photo taken before 1 November 2007) | |
| Born | 21 December 1966[1] Medina, Saudi Arabia |
| Arrested | December 2001 Jalalabad Northern Alliance |
| Released | 2015 |
| Citizenship | Saudi |
| Detained at | Guantanamo Bay detainment camp |
| ISN | 239 |
| Spouse | Zin Siddique |
| Children | Four children |
Shaker Abd al-Rahim Muhammad Aamer (born 21 December 1966)[2] is a Saudi citizen who was held by the United States in the Guantanamo Bay detention camp in Cuba for more than thirteen years without charge.[2][3]
Aamer was seized in Afghanistan by bounty hunters, who handed him over to US forces in December 2001 during the United States military operation in the country. Two months later, the US rendered Aamer to the Guantánamo camp; he was held there without trial or charge.[4][5][6][7] Aamer had been a legal resident in Britain for years before his imprisonment; the UK government repeatedly demanded his release, and many people there called for him to be released.[8][9]
According to documents published in the Guantanamo Bay files leak, the US military Joint Task Force Guantanamo believed that Aamer had led a unit of fighters in Afghanistan, including the Battle of Tora Bora, while his family was paid a stipend by Osama bin Laden. The file asserts past associations with Richard Reid and Zacarias Moussaoui.[8][9] Aamer denies being involved in terrorist activity and his lawyer, Clive Stafford Smith, said the leaked documents would not stand up in court. He claimed that part of the evidence came from an unreliable witness and that confessions Aamer made had been obtained through torture.[10][11] Aamer's father-in-law, Saaed Ahmed Siddique, said: "All of these claims have no basis. If any of this was true he would be in a court now."[12] The Bush administration acknowledged later that it had no evidence against Aamer.[13]
Aamer has never been charged with any wrongdoing, was never on trial, and his lawyer says he is "totally innocent."[14][15] He was approved for transfer to Saudi Arabia by the Bush administration in 2007 and the Obama administration in 2009.[15][16] He has been described as a "charismatic leader" who spoke up and fought for the rights of fellow prisoners. Aamer alleges that he has been subject to torture while in detention.[17]
Aamer has suffered decline in his mental and physical health over the years, as he participated in hunger strikes to protest his detention conditions, and was held in solitary confinement for much of the time. He claims to have lost 40 per cent of his body weight in captivity.[18][19][20] After a visit in November 2011, his lawyer said, "I do not think it is stretching matters to say that he is gradually dying in Guantanamo Bay."[21] In 2015, despite Aamer's deteriorating health, the US denied a request for an independent medical examination.[citation needed]
In February 2015, 3 pupils from Kenilworth School, Warwickshire, Alex Brown, Thomas Edwards and Gareth Evans sent a letter requesting the release of Aamer to Jeremy Wright MP, which many believe was the start of helping Aamer being released and returned to the UK.
Aamer, the last British resident to be held at Guantanamo Bay, was released to the United Kingdom on 30 October 2015.[2][22]
- ^ "JTF GTMO Detainee Profile" (PDF). nyt.com. Retrieved 21 April 2024.
- ^ a b c "Shaker Aamer, the last British resident held at Guantanamo Bay, is released", Telegraph, 30 October 2015
- ^ OARDEC (15 May 2006). "List of Individuals Detained by the Department of Defense at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba from January 2002 through May 15, 2006" (PDF). United States Department of Defense. Retrieved 29 September 2007.
- ^ Richard Norton-Taylor (3 July 2015). "Former UK ministers urge Obama to free Shaker Aamer from Guantánamo Bay". The Guardian.
- ^ JTF-GTMO (16 March 2007). "Measurements of Heights and Weights of Individuals Detained by the Department of Defense at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba". Department of Defense. Archived from the original on 17 November 2008. Retrieved 22 December 2008.
- ^ DoD data. "Measurements of Heights and Weights of Individuals Detained by the Department of Defense at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba (ordered and consolidated version)" (PDF). Center for the Study of Human Rights in the Americas. Archived from the original (PDF) on 13 June 2010.
- ^ "Shaker Aamer". FreeDetainees.org. 2011. Archived from the original on 16 November 2018. Retrieved 31 December 2011.
- ^ a b Ross, Tim (26 April 2011). "Wikileaks: Shaker Aamer willing to be 'a martyr'". The Daily Telegraph. London.
- ^ a b Gordon Rayner (2 May 2011). "How Osama bin Laden, the world's most wanted man, eluded US during 10-year manhunt". The Daily Telegraph. London.
- ^ "Guantanamo man wins papers ruling". BBC News. 8 December 2009. Retrieved 5 January 2012.
- ^ "Concerns over Guantanamo Bay interrogation methods". Wandsworth Guardian. 1 May 2010. Retrieved 5 January 2012.
- ^ Cahalan, Paul (3 May 2011). "Shaker Aamer family rubbish Bin Laden link". Your Local Guardian.
- ^ Mason, Chris (9 September 2011). "British Guantanamo inmate on hunger strike". BBC. Retrieved 5 January 2012.
- ^ "3,000 days of Guantanamo Bay imprisonment for Battersea man Shaker Aamer". The Guardian. 29 April 2010. Retrieved 5 January 2012.
- ^ a b Cite error: The named reference
TheScotsman9Jan2012was invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ Townsend, Mark (20 April 2013). "Last British resident in Guantánamo 'may never be allowed home'". The Guardian. Retrieved 3 April 2014.
- ^ "Shaker Aamer: Amnesty urgent action". The Guardian. London. 15 January 2012. Retrieved 15 January 2012.
- ^ Cite error: The named reference
TheIndependentFeb2012was invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ Cockburn, Alexander (4 February 2011). "Nine years on and still no justice for Shaker Aamer". Morning Star. Archived from the original on 24 May 2012. Retrieved 5 January 2012.
- ^ Cahalan, Paul (18 August 2011). "Fears grow over Britain's last inmate at Guantanamo Bay". The Independent. London.
- ^ McGuffin, Paddy (24 November 2011). "Guantanamo detainee 'slowly dying in hellhole'". Morning Star. Archived from the original on 14 June 2012. Retrieved 5 January 2012.
- ^ "Shaker Aamer: Last UK Guantanamo Bay detainee released". BBC. 30 October 2015. Retrieved 30 October 2015.