Harsh detention for Afghan prisoners

 



  Taleban and al-Qaeda prisoners flown from Afghanistan to an 
American naval base in the Caribbean are being held in tough 
conditions of detention.

  A temporary detention centre called Camp X-Ray has been set up 
at the base in Guantanamo Bay, an isolated US outpost on the 
edge of Fidel Castro's Cuba.

  The prisoners are being housed in cells measuring 1.8 by 2.4 
metres (six feet by eight feet) with open, chain-link walls, a 
concrete floor and wooden roof.

  They face intense interrogation by US officials anxious to track 
down Osama Bin Laden, the alleged mastermind behind the 11 
September suicide attacks on New York and Washington.

  The US authorities have not granted the detainees 
prisoner-of-war status, meaning they are not protected by the 
Geneva Convention.

  Washington wants military tribunals to try the prisoners, and 
the cases are expected to be heard outside the US.

  As the base is located outside sovereign territory, the 
prisoners have no legal rights under the US constitution, and no 
right of appeal to federal courts.

  
'Are they kennels?'

  Jeffrey Kofman, an American journalist who has visited the base, 
said the facility was "very, very minimal".

  The cells had concrete floors, wooden roofs and wire mesh walls. 
Prisoners had a foam mat to sleep on, two towels - one for 
washing, the other to use as a prayer mat - and some form of 
chamber pot, he said.

  "It was a far more bares bones facility than frankly I expected 
to see. They say they will be holding the detainees in cells, 
but really they are cages...

  "One person said: 'Are they kennels?', to which one of the 
military staff in charge said: 'No they're not kennels, they are 
cells, and they're within the bounds of the Geneva Convention. 
What we are operating is humane treatment, but we're not 
offering comfort'."

  
International concern

  The human rights group Amnesty International voiced concern 
about the "cages" used for accommodation, saying they would 
"fall below minimum standards for humane treatment".

  The first group to arrive - 20 prisoners described by US 
military officials as "the worst elements of al-Qaeda and the 
Taleban" - wore goggles covered with tape and had their hands 
tied. Some also wore leg shackles.

  They wore surgical masks as some prisoners had tested positive 
for tuberculosis and at least one prisoner was sedated.

  They will spend most of their time separated, although they will 
be allowed out of their cells in small groups for meals, showers 
and some recreation.

  
They will be allowed to pray according to their faith.

  
Mosquitoes

  The camp gets chilly at night and there are swarms of 
mosquitoes.

  The base - known by US servicemen as "Gitmo"- is surrounded by 
mangrove swamps, salt marshes and dense bush - and the sea is 
shark-infested.

  The camp perimeters - lit up at night - has watchtowers and two 
fences topped with razor wire constantly patrolled by heavily 
armed marines.

  
At night the camp is lit up with halogen floodlights.

  Members of a movement that tried to prevent women working may be 
disconcerted to find that some of their guards are women.

  "We have no intention of making it comfortable," Marine 
Brigadier-General Michael Lehnert told Reuters news agency. "It 
will be humane."

  Hundreds of marines and military police have been flown to 
Guantanamo Bay to expand the compound to house up to 2,000 
prisoners.

  American marines landed in Guantanamo during the 
Spanish-American war in 1898, and the base was established under 
a 1903 treaty.

  After Fidel Castro led the Communists to power in Cuba in 1959, 
then US President Dwight Eisenhower refused to relinquish the 
base despite strong objections from Havana.

  Although Washington continues to pay the rent - set 100 years 
ago at 2,000 gold coins a year, and now worth about $4,000 - Mr 
Castro refuses to cash the cheques.

  Cuban Frontier Battalion troops continue to watch their US 
counterparts along the 28-kilometre fence, but tension has 
diminished since the end of the Cold War.

  
Hunt continues

  American officials have named al-Qaeda and Taleban leaders 
killed or captured as frustration grows that some senior Taleban 
figures are reportedly slipping through the net.

  Among those who have not been questioned by the US military are 
three former Taleban ministers who turned themselves into the 
new Afghan authorities - only to be allowed to return to their 
homes.

  The most important is former Justice Minister Mullah Nuruddin 
Turabi - known to be close to Taleban leader Mullah Omar - 
former Defence Minister Mullah Ubaidullah and former Industry 
Minister Mullah Saadudin.

  US officials are eager to question the three, who they believe 
may have vital clues about the whereabouts of Mullah Omar and 
Osama Bin Laden.

  The hunt continues for Bin Laden himself and Mullah Omar, who is 
believed to have escaped by motorbike as thousands of Afghan 
soldiers closed in on his suspected hideout.

  Also on the wanted list are many more of Bin Laden's top 
lieutenants who are believed to have evaded capture. They 
include Ayman al-Zawahri, the Egyptian Islamic Jihad leader who 
is Bin Laden's close adviser and personal doctor.


Copyright @ BBC