Asadullah Jan
Asadullah Jan | |
|---|---|
| Born | 1981 Pakistan |
| Occupation | Former detainee |
| Known for | Extrajudicial detention at Guantanamo Bay |
Asadullah Jan is a Pakistani national who underwent extrajudicial detention at the United States' Guantanamo Bay facility located in Cuba. He was assigned the Guantanamo Internment Serial Number 47. While Joint Task Force Guantanamo analysts approximated his birth year as 1981, he claimed to have been only sixteen years old at the time of his capture in 2001. Although his birthplace was Pakistan, he identified himself as the child of Afghan refugees.
His name was recorded by analysts as "Asad Ullah," but in interviews conducted in 2008 with the McClatchy News Service, he corrected this to "Asadullah Jan." He was returned to his home country on July 16, 2003.
McClatchy News Service interview
On June 15, 2008, the McClatchy News Service released a collection of articles featuring interviews with 66 former detainees from Guantanamo. Among those highlighted was Asadullah Jan.
He recounted that his capture occurred while he was traveling back from visiting family in Zormat during Ramadan in 2001, when he was stopped at a checkpoint in Kohat, Pakistan. After approximately one month held by Pakistani authorities, American civilians identifying themselves as CIA agents questioned him based on incorrect intelligence alleging ties to Osama bin Laden. Upon transfer to US custody at the Kandahar detention center, he endured frequent beatings from guards, though not during interrogations. He described the detention environment as severely harsh.
Jan also witnessed an incident where a guard desecrated a Koran by disposing of it in a latrine. He stated that recalling his experiences at Guantanamo causes enduring psychological distress, with any reference to the United States prompting painful memories.