Hisham Bin Al Bin Amor Sliti
Hisham Sliti | |
|---|---|
| Born | February 12, 1966 Hamam Lif, Tunisia |
| Nationality | Tunisian, French |
| Known for | Extrajudicial detention at Guantanamo Bay detention camp |
Hisham Sliti, holding citizenship in both Tunisia and France, was subjected to extrajudicial detention at the United States' Guantanamo Bay detention camp located in Cuba. His assigned Internment Serial Number was 174. Born on February 12, 1966, in Hamam Lif, Tunisia, Sliti was transferred to Guantanamo on May 1, 2002, where he remained detained for more than twelve years. On November 20, 2014, he and Hussein Salem Mohammed were granted asylum by authorities in Slovakia.
Sliti’s legal counsel included attorney Clive Stafford Smith. He reported suffering physical abuse on August 5, 2005, alleging that an interrogator hurled a chair and a mini-refrigerator at him before summoning the initial reaction force. During July and August 2005, he took part in extensive hunger strikes protesting various grievances, among them the Qur'an desecration controversy of 2005.
The Slovak Spectator highlighted that Slovak security forces detained Sliti; the subsequent public release of footage showing his arrest sparked significant debate.
Official status reviews
The administration under President Bush initially maintained that individuals captured amid the "war on terror" were not entitled to protections under the Geneva Conventions, thereby permitting indefinite detention without formal charges or transparent judicial oversight. However, in 2004, the United States Supreme Court decided in Rasul v. Bush that detainees held at Guantanamo must be informed of the accusations against them and granted an opportunity to contest their confinement.
Office for the Administrative Review of Detained Enemy Combatants
Following this Supreme Court decision, the United States Department of Defense created the Office for the Administrative Review of Detained Enemy Combatants (OARDEC) to conduct periodic evaluations of detainee status.
In December 2008, researchers at the Brookings Institution, led by Benjamin Wittes, classified Guantanamo detainees according to allegations justifying their detention:<ref name=Brookings2008-12-16>
- Hisham Bin Ali Bin Amor Sliti was alleged to have ties with both Al Qaeda and the Taliban.
- He was also accused of residing in safehouses associated with Al Qaeda, Taliban, or similar groups.
- Military authorities claimed he underwent military or terrorist training while in Afghanistan.
- He was designated as an "al Qaeda operative."
- Sliti refuted all governmental accusations.
OARDEC compiled several Summary of Evidence documents for Sliti’s hearings: his Combatant Status Review Tribunal held on November 19, 2004, followed by his first and second annual Administrative Review Boards on September 9, 2005, and June 4, 2006.
Documentation shows that Sliti did not attend his reviews in 2004 or 2005 but was present for the 2006 hearing. The Department of Defense published a condensed transcript spanning 21 pages from that session.
Habeas corpus petition
A habeas corpus petition numbered 05-cv-429 was submitted on Sliti’s behalf.
On December 30, 2008, US District Court Judge Richard J. Leon ruled that Sliti and fellow detainee Moath Hamza Ahmed al-Alwi "were part of or supported the Taliban," thereby justifying their continued detention by US authorities. Judge Leon rejected Sliti’s assertion that his journey to Afghanistan aimed to overcome drug addiction and find a spouse as lacking credibility.
The New York Times characterized these decisions as "the first clear-cut victories for the Bush administration," while commentator Andy Worthington described them as a "disturbing development." Reuters quoted Jonathan Hafetz from the American Civil Liberties Union, who voiced apprehension about reliance on classified information and expansive detention powers.
Previously Classified Joint Task Force Guantanamo Evaluation
On April 25, 2011, the whistleblower group WikiLeaks released confidential evaluations prepared by analysts from Joint Task Force Guantanamo. One such document, an eleven-page report dated October 1, 2008, was signed by the camp commander, Rear Admiral David M. Thomas Jr., and advocated for the individual's continued detention at Guantanamo.
Detention in Slovakia
Slovak security forces apprehended Sliti at his residence. A recording of the arrest was acquired and aired by al Jazeera. While certain sources claim the footage was officially produced by law enforcement and subsequently leaked to al Jazeera, others contend it originated from an unofficial third-party observer.
External links
- Who Are the Remaining Prisoners in Guantánamo? Part Three: Captured Crossing from Afghanistan into Pakistan (1 of 2) Andy Worthington, September 22, 2010