Gitmo Guard Reunites With Ex-Inmates via Facebook
Six years after their release from the Guantánamo Bay prison, former inmates and British citizens Ruhal Ahmed and Shafiq Rasul met up in London with an American soldier, Brandon Neely, who had been one of their guards during their two-year detention at Gitmo.
Six years after their release from the Guantánamo Bay prison, former inmates and British citizens Ruhal Ahmed and Shafiq Rasul met up in London with an American soldier, Brandon Neely, who had been one of their guards during their two-year detention at Gitmo. Neely, now a police officer in Texas, contacted Ahmed and Rasul via Facebook last year, and the three agreed to meet in person for a reunion aided by the BBC. –KA
WAIT BEFORE YOU GO...BBC:
Released in 2004, after being held for two years, Mr Rasul and Mr Ahmed and another friend from Tipton had been captured in Afghanistan on suspicion of links to the Taliban. The three said they were beaten by US troops although this was disputed by the US government at the time.
After all that, the Facebook communique was a shock to Mr Rasul.
[…] “At first I couldn’t believe it. Getting a message from an ex-guard saying that what happened to us in Guantanamo was wrong was surprising more than anything.”
To Mr Neely’s astonishment he received a reply and the pair began an exchange of e-mails. It was at this point that the BBC asked if both sides would be prepared to meet in person.
This year, the ground feels uncertain — facts are buried and those in power are working to keep them hidden. Now more than ever, independent journalism must go beneath the surface.
At Truthdig, we don’t just report what's happening — we investigate how and why. We follow the threads others leave behind and uncover the forces shaping our future.
Your tax-deductible donation fuels journalism that asks harder questions and digs where others won’t.
Don’t settle for surface-level coverage.
Unearth what matters. Help dig deeper.
Donate now.
Middle East
What did we think nearly 50 years of war and neglect was going to do to the country?
Middle East
What some in Joe Biden's administration appear to see as an opportunity to sideline Hezbollah is really a trap destined for failure.
TD Interview
A new book offers a personal and political history of Bush-era America and its imprints on the present.
Film
With unprecedented access to the Taliban, the documentary “Hollywoodgate” makes promises it can’t keep.
Wounds of War
Over the decades, the DoD has been responsible for the deaths of scores of civilians, but compensating those harmed has never been a serious priority.
Opinion
Where’s the headline-making outrage over the never-ending travesty of Gitmo?
You need to be a supporter to comment.
There are currently no responses to this article.
Be the first to respond.