WH in 2013: Return of Bergdahl, Release of Detainees Two Separate Issues

    At the White House press briefing Monday, Jay Carney was not asked directly about his statement from June 2013 that "we would not make any decisions about transfer of any detainees without consulting with Congress and without doing so in accordance with U.S. law," as THE WEEKLY STANDARD first reported yesterday.  However, the Washington Post reports that Carney rejected criticism about the lack of notice to Congress:

White House press secretary Jay Carney on Monday dismissed criticism from lawmakers over the administration's Taliban prisoner swap for Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl, saying the deal "should not have come as a surprise to members of Congress" because the basic outlines had been discussed for years.

    White House Chief of Staff Denis McDonough echoed Carney's assertion:

At a forum at the Center for Strategic and International Studies on Monday, White House Chief of Staff Denis McDonough also defended the move, saying: "We've been consulting with members of Congress about this effort, including the potential transfer of five Gitmo detainees, for years."

    However, in the same June 2013 press briefing where Carney made his statement that the White House would consult with Congress before making any detainee transfer decisions, he made clear that the White House considered the return of Sgt. Bergdahl and the release of any detainees to be two separate issues [emphasis added]:

Q    So you haven’t ruled it out [the Taliban has offered to release Bowe Bergdahl in exchange for five members of the Taliban who are currently being held at Guantanamo Bay]? 

MR. CARNEY:  I’m simply saying that -- first of all, you have to separate the two issues.  We are focused on the return  -- the safe and immediate return of Sergeant Bergdahl, and we continue to use the tools at our disposal to help bring that about. 

We also expect the Taliban to raise the issue of their detainees in discussions that we have with them if those discussions take place.  And at this time we’ve made no decisions about the transfer of detainees.  And in accordance with law, we would be consulting with Congress should we make any decisions about that.  So we remain committed to the closure of Guantanamo Bay, as you know.  But separate from that on these specific issues about individual detainees, that would be a process that is done in accordance with law.

    The Obama administration is also claiming that secrecy and lack of time were other considerations in the lack of Congressional consultation or even notification.  House Intelligence Committee Chairman Mike Rogers is now saying Congress was last consulted about a possible Bergdahl-detainee swap in 2011, the Hill reports.


Note: A version of this post first appeared at The Weekly Standard.

Four More Former Gitmo Terrorists Returned to Battlefield

    The semi-annual report on "Re-engagement of Detainees Formerly Held at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba" was released on Wednesday by the Director of National Intelligence (DNI).  Out of a total of 614 former prisoners (up from 603 six months ago), intelligence has confirmed that 104 (up from 100) have re-engaged in terrorism/insurgent activities while another 74 are suspected of doing so. The latest report nudged the recidivism rate up to an even 29% from 28.9% last September.
    The report provides a chart breaking down the statistics into a number of categories:

    If there is good news to be found in the report, it is that 3 of the 4 detainees confirmed to have reengaged are now deceased.  Only one of the newly confirmed relapsed terrorist is still at large, joining the 56 other previously confirmed and 48 other suspected of reengaging presently not in custody.
    One of President Obama's first acts in office was to sign an executive order to close the facility at Guantanamo.  In his State of the Union address this January, the president briefly expressed his desire once again to see the facility closed, laying the responsibility on Congress to act.  Jay Carney was recently asked about a news report of a former detainee arrested in Britain suspected of terror activity in Syria, but Carney said he had not seen the report:

Q    A former Guantanamo detainee has been arrested in Britain on suspicion of terror offenses in Syria.  When you see these incidences pop up does it give the White House any pause on a policy for closing Guantanamo? 

MR. CARNEY:  I haven't seen that specific report.  What I can tell you is that there is a thorough review process on every individual, every detainee who’s being considered for transfer that takes all of these issues into account.

    As was the case six months ago, the new semi-annual report simply appeared on the DNI's website on Wednesday.   The release was not noted on the DNI's Twitter account, the agency's Facebook page, nor IC on the Record, the DNI's Tumblr account.


Note: A version of this post first appeared at The Weekly Standard.

More Former Guantanamo Bay Detainees Return To Terrorism

    An unclassified version of a September report from the Director of National Intelligence reveals that another five former Guantanamo Bay detainees have either been confirmed as reengaging in terrorism or are suspected of doing so.  The report comes just as a judge in Algeria has approved parole of two detainees recently transferred to Algerian custody from the Cuba-based detention facility.
    Of the 603 former detainees tracked by US intelligence services, a total of 100 have now been confirmed as reengaging in "terrorism" or "insurgent" activities, while another 74 are suspected of reengaging.  This brings the total rate of recidivism to nearly 29 percent, up from 28 percent as of the last report six months ago.  The report includes the following table of all detainee cases:

    Two of the detainees suspected of reengaging in the last six months are among those transferred since President Obama took office in 2009.   Of the seventy-four detainees transferred since January 22, 2009, seven are either confirmed or suspected of reengaging, up from five in the prior report, raising the recidivism rate of those transferred during the president's time in office from 7 percent to 10 percent.
    The two men transferred to Algerian custody on August 28 are Nabil Hadjarab and Motai Sayab, according to the Miami Herald.  Both had been cleared for release years ago and had been part of the hunger strike at Guantanamo.  There are still 90 or so detainees that have similarly been cleared for release but are still in custody pending arrangements with countries who will receive them subject to conditions.  A lawyer for one of the two detainees just paroled says that his client will be required to "check in with authorities every month."
    The report on all Guantanamo Bay detainees is required at least once every six months.  This latest version was released without comment on the website of the Director of National Intelligence on Thursday, September 5.  The release was not noted on the DNI's Twitter account, the agency's Facebook page, nor the latest social media outlet for the intelligence community, IC on the Record, the DNI's Tumblr account.


Note: A version of this article first appeared at The Weekly Standard.

U.S. Responds to Human Rights Concerns From Russia Over Gitmo Hunger Strike

    Thursday, at the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe, U.S. Chargé d’Affaires Gary Robbins delivered another response to the "many concerns" expressed by Russia about the ongoing hunger strike by many of the terrorist detainees at the Guantánamo Bay facility:

Last Thursday, President Obama reaffirmed the United States’ commitment to closing the detention facility at Guantánamo Bay, Cuba (GTMO), and proposed a series of steps to achieve that end, including his intention to lift the Presidential moratorium on detainee transfers to Yemen. The President also called on Congress to lift the restrictions on detainee transfers from Guantánamo, which the Administration has long maintained impede its ability to close the detention facility. To the extent possible, the United States will transfer those detainees who have been designated for transfer, and where appropriate, will prosecute others in our courts and military justice system. While it will take some time to fully close the detention facility in Guantánamo, all U.S. detention operations will continue to be carried out in accordance with international humanitarian law, including the Geneva Conventions, and all other applicable international and domestic laws. 

In the meantime, the Department of Defense is committed to ensuring the health and safety of the detainees who remain at the facility. 

Moreover, the United States remains committed to transparency about the facility and the military commissions. As we have previously noted, we are working with ODIHR to accommodate a visit Guantánamo and observe military commission proceedings. We have also offered to host the visit of a Russian delegation to Guantánamo, given the many concerns that the Russian Federation has expressed about the facility. That invitation remains open.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman.

    One of President Obama's first acts in office in 2009 was an executive order to close the Guantánamo Bay detention facility. The president has blamed Congress for its continued operation.


Note: This article first appeared at The Weekly Standard.