Sufyian Barhoumi
Sufyian ibn Muhammad Barhoumi | |
|---|---|
| Born | July 28, 1973 Algiers, Algeria |
| Occupation | Former detainee at Guantanamo Bay detention camp |
| Known for | Extrajudicial detention at Guantanamo Bay; charged before military commission |
Sufyian ibn Muhammad Barhoumi is an Algerian citizen who was subjected to extrajudicial detention at the United States' Guantanamo Bay facility located in Cuba. According to the Department of Defense, he was born on July 28, 1973, in Algiers, Algeria.
Barhoumi was transferred to Guantanamo on June 18, 2002, where he remained in custody for almost two decades. He was one of the limited number of detainees formally charged before a military commission at Guantanamo. In the closing period of President Barack Obama's tenure, he and Abdul Latif Nasir submitted urgent appeals seeking transfer.
Official status reviews
Under President George W. Bush’s administration, individuals apprehended during the "war on terror" were designated as outside the protections of the Geneva Conventions, allowing indefinite detention without formal charges or transparent judicial process. However, in 2004, the U.S. Supreme Court decision in Rasul v. Bush mandated that detainees at Guantanamo must be informed of the accusations against them and given an opportunity to contest their detention.
Office for the Administrative Review of Detained Enemy Combatants
In response to this ruling, the Department of Defense created the Office for the Administrative Review of Detained Enemy Combatants.
Researchers at the Brookings Institution, led by Benjamin Wittes, categorized detainees at Guantanamo in December 2008 based on the allegations justifying their confinement:
- Sufiyan Barhoumi was charged before a military commission; these charges were subsequently dismissed.
- He was accused of affiliation with Al Qaeda and undergoing military or terrorist training in Afghanistan.
- Barhoumi was identified as an "al Qaeda operative" and captured under circumstances indicating hostile engagement.
- Although he denied membership in Al Qaeda or the Taliban, he acknowledged facts supporting his detention under wartime laws.
- He admitted to having received training at camps run by Al Qaeda or the Taliban.
Habeas corpus petition
Barhoumi’s habeas corpus case, Civil Action No. 05-cv-1506, was pursued pro bono by lawyers from Holland & Hart LLP.
On September 24, 2009, U.S. District Court Judge Rosemary Collyer ruled that Barhoumi’s continued detention at Guantanamo was lawful. Media reports highlighted that he faced war crimes allegations involving training with Al Qaeda, bomb-making activities, and acquiring materials used for roadside bombs targeting U.S. forces in Afghanistan. The full text of this ruling remained classified.
An appellate panel upheld Judge Collyer’s decision on June 10, 2010.
Formerly secret Joint Task Force Guantanamo assessment
On April 25, 2011, whistleblower group WikiLeaks released previously confidential evaluations conducted by Joint Task Force Guantanamo personnel. Among these was a five-page assessment dated June 11, 2004, signed by camp commander Jay W. Hood, recommending Barhoumi’s continued detention.
Joint Review Task Force
When President Barack Obama assumed office in January 2009, he committed to closing Guantanamo within a year, ending torture practices, and establishing a new review process involving six federal departments—contrasting with earlier procedures managed solely by the Department of Defense through OARDEC. One year later, the Joint Review Task Force identified certain detainees as too dangerous to release despite insufficient evidence to formally charge them. On April 9, 2013, this classification list was disclosed following a FOIA request. Sufiyan Barhoumi was included among 71 detainees considered too innocent to prosecute but too risky to free.
Charges before a military commission
On July 6, 2004, then-President United States President Bush directed that Sufyian Barhoumi be formally charged before a military commission. The authority responsible for appointing military commissions ratified these charges on November 4, 2005. Barhoumi was accused of conspiracy, with the indictment comprising a five-page document outlining thirteen broad allegations similar to those leveled against Jabran Said bin al Qahtani, Binyam Ahmed Muhammad, and Ghassan Abdullah al Sharbi. On the same day, charges were confirmed not only against Barhoumi but also these detainees and others, including Omar Khadr. While Barhoumi, Qahtani, Sharbi, and Muhammad faced conspiracy accusations, Khadr was charged with both murder and conspiracy.
Following the Supreme Court ruling in Hamdan v. Rumsfeld in July 2006—which determined that only Congress held the authority to establish military commissions—all charges against the ten men were dismissed.
On May 29, 2008, Barhoumi, along with Jabran al-Qathani and Ghassan Abdullah al-Sharbi, was re-indicted under military commissions authorized by Congress. Nevertheless, on October 21, 2008, Susan J. Crawford, who headed the Office of Military Commissions, announced that charges against Barhoumi had been dropped. As reported by Carol J. Williams of the Los Angeles Times, all five detainees had been connected through testimony from Abu Zubaydah, a detainee subjected to controversial interrogation methods such as "waterboarding." Legal counsel anticipated that new charges would be filed within thirty days; the dismissal was attributed to procedural issues and the resignation of Prosecutor Darrel Vandeveld due to ethical objections. Defense lawyer Clive Stafford Smith suggested this action was intended to preempt Vandeveld’s anticipated testimony regarding suppression of exculpatory material.
Since then, Barhoumi has not faced new charges. In 2013, according to Jess Bravin of the Wall Street Journal, Barhoumi indicated a willingness to accept a guilty plea on any charge if it guaranteed a definitive release date. He was expected to be charged with providing material support for terrorism, though appellate courts had overturned convictions based on this charge for other detainees. In 2009, Barhoumi nearly agreed to a plea arrangement involving a 20-year sentence but sought credit for approximately eight years already served.
Status during the Donald Trump administration
During President Barack Obama's final year in office, his administration emphasized transferring detainees out of Guantanamo Bay. The Washington Post identified Sufyian Barhoumi as one of five individuals approved for release; however, he remained detained at Guantanamo when President Donald Trump assumed office in 2017.
Release
On April 2, 2022, Barhoumi was repatriated to Algeria.
External links
- Who Are the Remaining Prisoners in Guantánamo? Part Six: Captured in Pakistan (2 of 3) Andy Worthington, October 6, 2010
- Commissions Transcripts Exhibits, and Allied Papers
- US military charges Omar Khadr with murder, CTV, November 7, 2005
- US charges five Guantanamo detainees with war crimes, China Daily, November 7, 2005
- Canadian held at Guantanamo charged with murder, CBC, November 7, 2005
- Five More Guantanamo Detainees Charged, The Guardian, November 7, 2005
- Human Rights First; Habeas Works: Federal Courts’ Proven Capacity to Handle Guantánamo Cases (2010)
- Supreme Court to hear challenge to military commissions, San Francisco Mercury, November 7, 2005