Mohammed Assad (a/k/a "al-Assad", "al-Asaad" and "al-Asad"; 1960–2016) was a citizen of Yemen who, according to Amnesty International, was subjected to extraordinary rendition by the CIA, and held in the CIA's network of black sites—secret interrogation centers.[1][2][3][4][5][6][7][8] Assad had been living and working in Tanzania. Amnesty International reports he was captured on December 26, 2003, and held by the CIA until May 2005.
| Mohammed al-Asad | |
|---|---|
| Born | 1960 |
| Arrested | 2003-12-26 Tanzania Tanzanian Police, CIA |
| Released | 2005 Yemen |
| Died | 2016 (aged 55–56) |
| Citizenship | Yemen |
| Detained at | CIA black sites |
| Charge(s) | extrajudicial detention |
| Status | released without charge in 2005 |
Asad claimed that the only thing he was asked about during his interrogation was the Al-Haramain Foundation, which the Bush administration has listed as a charity tied to terrorism.[5] His interrogators believed he had worked for Al-Haramain.
In May 2005, Muhammad Assad, and two other Yemenis, Salah Ali and Muhammad Bashmilah, were transferred to Yemeni custody.[5]
In November 2005 Anne Fitzgerald, a policy researcher for Amnesty International, spoke about interviews she conducted with the three men.[5] She said that she found the men's accounts credible, because their accounts of CIA custody were consistent, even though they had never been detained together, either in their US custody, or in Yemeni custody. According to Fitzgerald, the three describe being held in solitary confinement, isolated from all contact with the outside world, under conditions Amnesty International described as "sensory deprivation".
According to The Washington Post, as of November 2005, all three men remained in Yemeni custody.[5] Muhammad Assad was held in a "security prison at Al Ghaydah".
The Washington Post contacted the CIA, and reported that CIA officials declined to refute or confirm the Amnesty International account.[5]
In December, 2014, the United States Senate Intelligence Committee released a 600-page summary of a massive analysis of the CIA's use of torture.[2] According to Newsweek, the report was the first time the US had officially acknowledged that al-Asad was held, and treated abusively, by the CIA. Newsweek described al-Asad as being "wrongfully detained".
Al-Asad died in May 2016.[8]
On October 8, 2016, The New York Times started publishing a series of articles on the ongoing mental problems suffered by individuals who had been tortured by the US.[8] Al-Asad was one of the individuals whose problems they described.
References edit
- ^
Scott Shane (2014-12-12). "Amid Details on Torture, Data on 26 Who Were Held in Error". The New York Times. p. A1. Retrieved 2014-12-13.
The C.I.A. told the Senate in its formal response that the real number of wrongful detentions was "far fewer" than 26 but did not offer a number. Human rights advocates who have tracked the C.I.A. program believe that considerably more than 26 were wrongfully detained. Another Yemeni client of Ms. Satterthwaite, for instance, Mohammed al-Asad, was left out of the Senate's count, even though he languished for months in C.I.A. prisons without being questioned, was sent home to Yemen and was never charged with a terrorism-related crime.
- ^ a b
Walker, Lauren (2014-12-11). "For one detainee, the CIA torture report was a victory". Newsweek. Archived from the original on 2016-08-24. Retrieved 2016-10-10.
But for others like Mohammed al-Asad, a Yemeni national who was wrongfully detained and subjected to harsh treatment in the CIA's rendition program, it was a cause for celebration. Tucked away in the 525-page summary is his name, marking the first time that a government has recognized what had happened to him.
- ^
"Mohammed al-Asad v. Djibouti: Seeking Justice for a Victim of Extraordinary Rendition". Center for Human Rights and Global Justice. Archived from the original on 2014-12-13.
Mohammed al-Asad's life as he knew it fell apart in 2003, when he was kidnapped from his family home, secretly detained in a foreign country, and abused for over one year. Mohammed was a victim of the U.S. extraordinary rendition and secret detention program. He was never charged with a terrorism-related crime. Along with myriad others, he has effectively been denied access to U.S. courts, which have repeatedly declined to hear cases of rendition victims, invoking the state secrets doctrine.
- ^
Meg Satterthwaite (2013-11-02). "African Commission Emerges as New Forum in Quest for Justice for Rendition Victims". Just Security. Archived from the original on 2014-07-02. Retrieved 2014-12-13.
The case, argued by Meg Satterthwaite of the Global Justice Clinic at NYU School of Law and Judy Oder of INTERIGHTS, seeks relief for the secret detention, ill-treatment, and refoulement of an ordinary Yemeni man who was caught up in the CIA's rendition, detention, and interrogation program from late 2003 to mid-2005. The case is the first in the African human rights system, and the latest in a trend of international cases to confront U.S. partner states for their role in implementing the CIA's extraordinary rendition and secret detention program. Mohammed Al-Asad's case has the potential to open a new avenue for justice and accountability for individuals who were rendered and detained by African states.
- ^ a b c d e f Josh White (November 7, 2005). "Prisoner Accounts Suggest Detention At Secret Facilities: Rights Group Draws Link to the CIA". The Washington Post. p. A11. Archived from the original on November 4, 2012. Retrieved 2008-05-13.
- ^ ""Disappearance", Secret detention and Arbitrary detention: CASE SHEET of Muhammad Abdullah Salah al-Assad". Amnesty International. November 7, 2005. Archived from the original on October 17, 2010. Retrieved 2008-05-13. mirror
- ^ "Secret Detention in CIA "Black Sites"". Amnesty International. November 7, 2005. Archived from the original on November 19, 2007. Retrieved 2008-05-13. mirror
- ^ a b c
Matt Apuzzo, Sheri Fink, James Risen (2016-10-08). "How U.S. Torture Left a Legacy of Damaged Minds: Beatings, sleep deprivation, menacing and other brutal tactics have led to persistent mental health problems among detainees held in secret C.I.A. prisons and at Guantánamo". The New York Times. Archived from the original on 2016-10-10. Retrieved 2016-10-10.
Mr. Asad, who died in May, was held for more than a year in several secret C.I.A. prisons.
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