Eighth death in Guantanamo

An Afghan detainee in Guantánamo Bay has died in what the US is calling an “apparent suicide”. He is the eighth person to die and one of the last to enter Guantanamo since its opening.

Inayatullah was a 37-year-old who had been captured in Afghanistan and transferred to Guantánamo in September 2007. According to a press release from the US military’s Sothern Command he was found dead by guards following routine checks. The release states that guards “found the detainee unresponsive and not breathing.”

The release goes on to state that the Naval Criminal Investigative Service “has initiated an investigation of the incident to determine the cause and manner surrounding the death.”

The primary focus of the second half of the release is on the fact that Inayatullah’s remains will be “treated with respect for Islamic culture and traditions” through the assistance of a “cultural advisor”. The release is also keen to highlight the United States’ allegations against Inayatullah, such as he was an “admitted planner for al Qaida terrorist operations” and contributed to “transnational terrorism across multiple borders.”

The release fails to mention that many so-called confessions extracted under interrogation at Guantánamo would not be admissible in a civilian court of law. Furthermore, to level allegations against a recently deceased detainee who is unable to refute is abhorrent. It begs the question: why does the US military feel the need to qualify a Guantánamo death with allegations against the deceased?

The final paragraph of the release iterates that the authorities at Guantánamo “continue to provide safe, humane, legal and transparent care and custody of detainees.” Inayatullah was the eighth prisoner to die at the detention centre. Five others died of “apparent suicides” and two died of natural causes. It hardly seems safe or humane. “Transparent care and custody” should mean an independent investigation and full pathologist report released to the public. This, however, is unlikely to happen and, like previous detainee deaths, questions are left unanswered.

 Update,20 May 2011:

A statement from Inayatullah’s lawyer was reported today. Paul Rashkind told the Associated Press that the prisoner had a long history of mental illness pre-dating his arrival in Guantanamo. It also emerged that Inayatullah had twice before attempted to kill himself in the prison.

“This was a young man who suffered significant psychosis, a paralyzing psychosis beginning many years ago, long before he got to Gitmo,” Rashkind said in a phone interview.

Inayatullah was found unconscious and not breathing after apparently hanging himself with what appeared to be bed linen in an exercise yard of the detention centre, a Guantanamo spokeswoman, Navy Cmdr. Tamsen A Reese, told the Associated Press.

These new facts raise fresh questions as to the care provided to Guantanamo detainees. A person suffering from a history of severe mental illness surely should not have been detained in the first place. Rendering a person to the confines of Guantanamo will only worsen a person’s mental illness. Moreover, how could a person who suffers from mental illness and has attempted suicide previously manage to hang himself in an exercise yard without drawing attention from the guards?

Amnesty International has called for an independent, civilian-led investigation into the death and stated that previous investigations by the Naval Criminal Investigation Service “have lacked independence and transparency.”

Rashkind also revealed that the detainee’s real name was apparently Hajji Nassim and that there was not evidence to support the allegations raised against him.

“I will tell you as far as I’m concerned he never did a violent act, he never planned a violent act,” Rashkind said. “He was not a terrorist. His mental health issues made it difficult to address why he was there.”