1. Fifty-five percent (55%) of the detainees are not determined to have committed any hostile acts against the United States or its coalition allies.
2. Only 8% of the detainees were characterized as al Qaeda fighters. Of the remaining detainees, 40% have no definitive connection with al Qaeda at all and 18% are have no definitive affiliation with either al Qaeda or the Taliban.
3. The Government has detained numerous persons based on mere affiliations with a large number of groups that in fact, are not on the Department of Homeland Security terrorist watchlist. Moreover, the nexus between such a detainee and such organizations varies considerably. Eight percent are detained because they are deemed “fighters for;” 30% considered “members of;” a large majority – 60% — are detained merely because they are “associated with” a group or groups the Government asserts are terrorist organizations. For 2% of the prisoners their nexus to any terrorist group is unidentified.
4. Only 5% of the detainees were captured by United States forces. 86% of the detainees were arrested by either Pakistan or the Northern Alliance and turned over to United States custody. This 86% of the detainees captured by Pakistan or the Northern Alliance were handed over to the United States at a time in which the United States offered large bounties for capture of suspected enemies.
5. Finally, the population of persons deemed not to be enemy combatants – mostly Uighers – are in fact accused of more serious allegations than a great many persons still deemed to be enemy combatants.

“There were people in Afghanistan for jihad, but there were also people there for other reasons, especially doing charity work, and many of them were handed over to U.S. soldiers for the reward money. Since they were not battle-hardened soldiers, they were easy to catch and turn in.”

Agreed some were innocent, and I would admit that the occasional innocent Afghan goatherd was turned over by unscrupulous people to the coalition or northern alliance forces. However, the vast majority of interns in Cuba are Arabs who hailed from the Gulf who were in Afghanistan in a fighting capacity, many were members of Al-Qaeda’s infamous 55 brigade which did most of the Taliban’s fighting, and massacres, particularly against the Shia Hazara. As for those Muslims doing charity work a lot of them as you know were ideologically allied with the Taliban or had close links with Al Qaeda. The bizarre Canadian-Egyptian Khadre family is a good example of this close relationship between Al-Qaeda and Muslim charity groups.

Ann, I would reserve my tears for more deserving people.

Another of your comments:

I don’t believe its only the US gov that thinks that al-Qaeda is a terrorist organization. A lot of us Ghora’s think so too.

A lot of muslims think so too and would like to see them wiped out or reformed, but they also think the US government is a much bigger terrorist.

Asma,

I am afraid that is an invalid and uninformed proposition.

It’s like asking what were the companions (arabs and converts at that) of the Prophet (peace be upon) doing in China, Asia, Africa, etc in the 7th century onwards. Or asking what is anyone doing anywhere, just because you are paranoid?

Your reasoning is similar to the same that was used to charge these innocent people now in Guantanamo Bay and elsewhere.

Civility demands that you present hard evidence as to why they are “illegal combatants” (a very useless and meaningless term anyway). Who is legal and illegal in an ILLEGAL war. Amazing!

You guys make me laugh sometimes. It’s unbelievable how “you” have been able to get away with so much atrocities and injustices.

“You” invade a country and then call the people fighting back “rebels”, “militias”, “insurgents”, etc.

“Oh, look at them, they are fighting back, they are criminals…”

Come on…give yourself a break!

Asma, there were people in Afghanistan for jihad, but there were also people there for other reasons, especially doing charity work, and many of them were handed over to U.S. soldiers for the reward money. Since they were not battle-hardened soldiers, they were easy to catch and turn in.

And a lot of these prisoners weren’t even taken in Afghanistan; they were in Pakistan or other places.

I have not seen the movie, and I don’t think I will. But considering that most Pakistani suicide bombers blow up their Shia fellow citizens, I don’t know how the movie is going to convince anyone that somehow its US foreign policy that is creating these fanatics.

I don’t believe its only the US gov that thinks that al-Qaeda is a terrorist organization. A lot of us Ghora’s think so too.

You can have a peak at some of the prisoners at http://www.cageprisoners.com Hey I would arrest(maybe shoot) these guys on site, and what the hell were arabs and white converts(bearded types with short pants) doing in the wilds of Afganistan?

And what type of torture are we talking about here. Loud noise? making someone sit in an uncomfortable position? I went to a strict Catholic school and worse things were done to us.(please no buggery jokes)

On a different note, have you seen the movie Syriana? Showing the fate of many (pakistani) young men and how “simple” the explanation of how men or indeed women become suicide bombers is.

Ofocurse the movie covers other aspects of world politics and the US hand in it all.