Mohammed Bajabu, Kenyan detained in Guantanamo Bay cleared for release

Nairobi, Kenya, Nov 12- Mohammed Abdul Malik Bajabu, a Kenyan who was being held at the US detention facility in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba has been cleared for release by the Periodic Review Board according to CNN.

Bajabu was the only Kenyan captive held at the United States military prison located within Guantanamo Bay Naval Base, also referred to as Guantánamo, GTMO, and Gitmo.

Bajabu who has been in detention for 15 years has been cleared alongside a Somali national Hassan Duran who was also being held in the detention facility infamous for human rights abuses, since 2006.

CNN reported that the board announced the decision on Tuesday according to public filings and his attorney Shane Kadidal.

Kadidal told CNN he had found out about the board’s decision regarding his client on Monday.

Gitmo was established by U.S. President George W. Bush’s administration in 2002 during the war on terror following the September 11, 2001 attacks and housed what the US military called ‘enemy combatants.

Approximately 780 prisoners have been held at Guantánamo since its establishment.

CNN said that incumbent US President Joe Biden has announced publicly that he wants to close the detention facility and the National Security Council is undergoing a review of the facility before making the final decision.

The prison is notorious for human rights abuses that occurred there when prisoners were tortured under the (Central Intelligence Agency) CIA’s so-called “enhanced interrogation techniques” program.

According to a 2006 report released by Human Rights First, a nonpartisan, International human rights organization based in New York City and Washington, the technique was conducted between 2002 and 2009, with the authorization of officials in the Bush Administration’s White House and the Department of Justice.

“During that time, 119 detainees were held in CIA custody, and at least 39 were subjected to these techniques. These techniques constitute torture or cruel inhuman or degrading treatment—both illegal under the U.S. and international law,” the report reads in part.

Bajabu has been detained since 2007, Mark Maher, a staff attorney for the human rights group Reprieve US who represents him, told CNN.

According to Department of Defense filings, Bajabu was a facilitator for al Qaeda in East Africa before he was detained. He was never charged with any crimes.

The Periodic Review Board noted that its decision to clear Bajabu for release was based on his “low level of training and lack of leadership role in his pre-detention activities.” CNN said.

The Periodic Review Board (PRB) a government entity established during the Obama administration to determine whether detainees at the facility were guilty, announced the decisions in filings posted to its website.

This PRB process was established by the President’s March 7, 2011, Executive Order (EO) 13567 and operates consistent with section 1023 of the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for the Fiscal Year 2012.

The PRB includes a cross-section of the national security community. The PRB decision-making panel consists of one senior official from the Departments of Defense, Homeland Security, Justice, and State; the Joint Staff, and the Office of the Director of National Intelligence.

With these two decisions, 15 detainees have now been cleared for transfer by the Periodic Review Board and are eligible for release, pending diplomatic arrangements, according to CNN.