Abdullah Tabarak Ahmad
Abdullah Tabarak Ahmad | |
|---|---|
| Born | December 12, 1955 Casablanca, Morocco |
| Occupation | Transit employee (prior to detention) |
| Known for | Former detainee at Guantanamo Bay; alleged Osama bin Laden security personnel |
Abdullah Tabarak Ahmad (عبدالله تبارك أحمد), identified as detainee number 56 at Guantanamo, is a Moroccan national born on December 12, 1955, in Casablanca, Morocco. He was subjected to extrajudicial detention at the United States' Guantanamo Bay detainment camps located in Cuba. According to the United States Department of Defense, he was apprehended near the Pakistan-Afghanistan border in December 2001 and later repatriated to Morocco on July 1, 2003.
Prior to his detention, Ahmad worked as a transit employee in Morocco. His family ties include a daughter married to senior al-Qaeda operations leader Abu Faraj al-Libbi, another daughter wed to al-Qaeda member Ibrahim al-Qosi, and a son who fought with the Taliban and was subsequently released through a prisoner swap.
Allegations
Tabarak is accused of serving as one of Osama bin Laden’s security personnel. Reports suggest he volunteered to carry bin Laden’s satellite phone with the intention of misleading US forces, facilitating bin Laden’s escape from Tora Bora.
Access restrictions
The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) indicated that Tabarak was among detainees they were prohibited from visiting. A memorandum dated October 9, 2003, stated that camp officials denied the ICRC access to him, citing "military necessity" as justification.
Return to Morocco
In August 2004, Abdullah Tabarak Ahmad was transferred from Guantanamo into the custody of Moroccan law enforcement and was released on bail four months afterward. This decision surprised security experts, considering that General Geoffrey Miller had previously identified Tabarak as the only detainee barred from Red Cross visits, and Moroccan authorities had referred to him as the emir of Guantanamo.
Capture on December 15, 2001
Tabarak was detained on December 15 or 16, 2001, alongside approximately thirty other Arab individuals attempting to cross from Afghanistan into Pakistan. Among these captives, he was regarded as one of four significant detainees—a follower of Osama bin Laden who had worked on his Sudanese farm and accompanied him to Afghanistan. The other three—Ali Hamza al-Bahlul, Ibrahim al-Qosi, and Mohammed al-Qahtani—were charged before Guantanamo military commissions. Tabarak was among the earliest to be returned home, leading some analysts to suggest his involvement was less central than initially assumed.
Role outlined during Salim Hamdan's tribunal
On July 24, 2008, Michael St. Ours, an agent with the Naval Criminal Investigative Service, testified that during his interrogation of Salim Ahmed Hamdan, who was alleged to be an Osama bin Laden bodyguard and driver, Hamdan identified Abdellah Tabarak as the chief of Osama bin Laden’s security team. The Associated Press reported that St. Ours expressed surprise upon learning from Hamdan’s defense attorneys that Tabarak had been released despite being described as a "very hard individual."
According to Carol Rosenberg of the Miami Herald, St. Ours appeared "stunned" when questioned about his awareness of Tabarak’s release without charges. Rosenberg noted that Tabarak, born in Casablanca and aged 47 at the time, was described by St. Ours as "the head bodyguard of all the bodyguards."
Andrew Cohen, a legal affairs analyst for CBS News, labeled the revelation of Tabarak’s release as a "colossal embarrassment" for the government, stating: