Mohammed Jawad may be going home.
In a filing to the D.C. Circuit Court yesterday, the U.S. government offered a deal to facilitate Jawad's transfer from Guantanamo Bay Prison. Jawad is an Afghan national who has been detained at Guantanamo Bay since 2002 after being accused of tossing a grenade at a passing American convoy--an attack that resulted in the injury of two U.S. servicemen. In recent weeks, the government's case for detaining Jawad--who was a minor when he was captured and was subject to torture by Afghan and American authorities--has unraveled, with Judge Ellen Huvelle suppressing the coerced confessions that comprised the core of the government's case against him and slamming the case as an "outrage."
At a recent hearing on July 16, Huvelle said, "This guy has been there seven years, seven years. He might have been taken there at the age of maybe 12, 13, 14, 15 years old. I don't know what he is doing there. Without his statements, I don't understand your case. I really don't."
The government has proposed a 15-day timetable to facilitate Jawad's transfer from Gitmo, pending an obligatory report to Congress about Jawad's release and "any risks to national security" that might result from his transfer, mandated by the Supplemental Appropriations Act of 2009. Jawad's defense team however, is concerned that the 15-day proposal will merely serve as a window for the government to indict him on criminal charges--despite not having enough evidence to hold him in the first place. The government claims in its filing that it has "newly available evidence" of Jawad's involvement in the grenade attack seven years ago that they have not submitted to the court.
Jonathan Hafetz of the ACLU, a member of Jawad's defense team, heard about the government's order only minutes after touching down in the U.S. after visiting Jawad at Guantanamo Bay."We believe we are getting closer to ending this young man's near seven-year nightmare of lawless detention and abuse by the United States," said Hafetz. " We remain concerned by the suggestion that the government could prolong his detention by bringing the same basic charge in another court after failing to provide any credible or reliable evidence against him. It is time for Jawad to be sent home to his family."
Ken Gude from the Center for American Progress says, "Judges usually show a fair amount of deference to the government in terrorism cases, but this case is not usual by any means." Given Jawad's status as a minor and the length of his detention, Gude doubts that "a judge would allow the government to play tricks with the system to keep him in custody. "
Major Eric Montalvo, who acted as Jawad's defense counsel in his military commissions trial, was more optimistic about the government's position. "The stressful question was whether [the government] would stipulate to release...It is a sign of hope that the US government is finally able to recognize when a case has no merit and to resolve it. This case is precedent setting and an example of the government doing the right thing even when it is difficult."
In the government's filing, they suggest that a criminal prosecution may result from an ongoing DoJ investigation--although the government claims that logistical and legal reasons preclude Jawad's immediate transfer, not the possibility of prosecution. Hafetz and Montalvo both told TAP that the Afghan government has offered to bring him home immediately, at their expense, and that no delay is necessary. "They want him back," says Hafetz.
Lt. Col. Darrel J. Vandeveld, who acted as Jawad's prosecutor in his military commissions trial and resigned after concluding that the evidence against him was unreliable because it was gleaned through torture, warned that the DoJ's filing asked for time to prepare for Jawad's transfer merely to "the receiving government."
"Given how Orwellian and Kafkaesque these proceedings have been," Vandeveld says, "it's at least conceivable that DOJ will attempt to have the US government be the 'receiving government.'"
Jawad doesn't seem to be out of the woods yet. I'll be at the U.S. District Court this morning for today's hearing. I'll let you know what happens.
-- A. Serwer
