Mohammed Ali Abdullah Bwazir
Muhammad Ali Abdallah Muhammad Bwazir | |
|---|---|
| Born | Template:Birth year and age Hawra', Yemen |
| Occupation | Detainee |
| Known for | Former detainee at Guantanamo Bay detention facility |
Muhammad Ali Abdallah Muhammad Bwazir is a Yemeni national who was previously detained without formal charges at the United States' Guantanamo Bay detention facility located in Cuba. His assigned Guantanamo Internment Serial Number was 440. U.S. intelligence estimates place his birth year around 1980 in Hawra', Yemen.
Bwazir was transferred to Guantanamo on May 1, 2002. In December 2015, authorities informed Congress about plans to relocate 17 detainees within a 30-day timeframe. The military aimed to repatriate the final three detainees, including Bwazir, on January 21, 2016. Nevertheless, Bwazir unexpectedly declined repatriation at the last moment. On January 5, 2017, he and three other Yemeni detainees were relocated to Saudi Arabia.
Hunger strike
Bwazir took part in the hunger strike at Guantanamo in 2006. His legal representatives argued that the intensified force-feeding methods employed by the facility violated anti-torture regulations established the previous autumn.
Starting January 2006, authorities used force-feeding combined with restraint chairs to control hunger strikers. Bwazir’s attorneys filed an emergency injunction alleging excessive force during his feedings, which included:
- Being securely fastened in a restraint chair with arms, legs, and head immobilized
- The use of a larger nasal feeding tube that caused increased discomfort
- Administration of excessive fluids via the tube despite his ability to drink orally
- Prolonged periods confined in the chair during feedings
- Denial of restroom access while restrained and immediately after
- Placement in solitary confinement following feedings
Medical documentation revealed that Bwazir’s weight fell to 97 pounds amid a hunger strike lasting 140 days and that restraint durations surpassed manufacturer recommendations. Lieutenant Colonel Jeremy Martin defended the force-feedings as humane, attributing extended restraint time to the length of feeding procedures.
Government attorneys contended that prohibitions against torture and cruel treatment did not extend to Guantanamo detainees. Judge Gladys Kessler characterized the claims as "extremely disturbing." In February 2009, she declined to ban the use of restraint chairs for force-feeding Bwazir and another detainee, citing insufficient medical expertise to challenge camp officials’ rationale.
Agence France Presse reported that Bwazir and fellow detainee Omar Khamis Bin Hamdoon did not oppose force-feeding itself but disputed the necessity of restraints. Additionally, reports suggested camp officials withheld other medical care from hunger strikers as leverage to end their protest.
Official status reviews
During the Bush Administration, it was asserted that individuals captured in the "war on terror" were not protected under the Geneva Conventions and could be held indefinitely without formal charges or transparent review processes. However, in 2004, the United States Supreme Court ruled in Rasul v. Bush that detainees at Guantanamo must be informed of allegations against them and given an opportunity to contest those claims.
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 tasked with conducting detainee status evaluations.
In December 2008, researchers from the Brookings Institution, led by Benjamin Wittes, categorized detainees based on common military accusations:
- Mohammed Ali Abdullah Bwazir was identified as having ties to both Al Qaeda and the Taliban.
- He was alleged to have traveled to Afghanistan for jihadist purposes.
- Accused of residing in safehouses linked to Al Qaeda, Taliban, or other groups.
- Charged with receiving military or terrorist training within Afghanistan.
- Allegedly engaged in combat on behalf of the Taliban.
- Captured under circumstances indicating hostile activity.
- Classified as a foreign combatant.
- Denied direct affiliation with Al Qaeda or Taliban but acknowledged facts justifying detention under laws governing armed conflict.
- Included among eight detainees who did not fit neatly into other categories.
These groupings illustrate how the Department of Defense structured its approach to detainee classification and justification for continued detention.
habeas corpus
In 2005, a habeas corpus application was submitted on behalf of Bwazir.
Previously confidential Joint Task Force Guantanamo evaluation
On April 25, 2011, the whistleblowing group WikiLeaks released classified evaluations prepared by analysts from the Joint Task Force Guantanamo. Bwazir's 9-page Joint Task Force Guantanamo assessment was created on October 27, 2008. The document was endorsed by camp commander Rear Admiral David M. Thomas Jr., who advised that detention should be maintained.
External links
- Who Are the Remaining Prisoners in Guantánamo? Part Two: Captured in Afghanistan (2001) Andy Worthington, September 17, 2010
- Mohammed Ali Abdullah Bwazir: Allegations of Abuse