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From United Press International
GUANTANAMO BAY NAVAL BASE, Cuba, Jan. 16 (UPI) -- The case of a medically impaired detainee has raised larger questions about whether the detention facility at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, is equipped to handle an aging and increasingly fragile population.
Abd al Hadi al Iraqi was brought to the prison in 2007 with a pre-existing degenerative disc disease and has undergone five spinal surgeries over the past two years. Hadi, 57, has been charged with war crimes as an alleged commander of al-Qaida fighters in Afghanistan after 9/11. The military commission held pretrial proceedings this month to determine accommodations for Hadi's ailing health that would maximize his participation in a trial.
"In medical language, it's a teaching case," said retired Brig. Gen. Stephen Xenakis, who has testified on behalf of the defense teams of several detainees. "Here you've got a man who's got a problem and no matter what we have certain standards that we're supposed to adhere to."
The detention facility must plan for at least 25 more years of care, according to a July 2018 memorandum to Joint Task Force Guantanamo from then-Deputy Secretary of Defense Pat Shanahan.
COMMENT:-
There are some interesting statistics a bit further down in the article - including the 45 to 1 "Staff"/"Detainee" (or "Guard/"Prisoner" if you prefer) ratio.
But what I found most interesting is that the US government is planning on detentions that look like being 40+ years long for people whom the US government has not tried and convicted of committing any crime (and which the US government doesn't appear to have any plans to try either).
Defense Dept. grappling with care for ailing Guantanamo detainees
GUANTANAMO BAY NAVAL BASE, Cuba, Jan. 16 (UPI) -- The case of a medically impaired detainee has raised larger questions about whether the detention facility at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, is equipped to handle an aging and increasingly fragile population.
Abd al Hadi al Iraqi was brought to the prison in 2007 with a pre-existing degenerative disc disease and has undergone five spinal surgeries over the past two years. Hadi, 57, has been charged with war crimes as an alleged commander of al-Qaida fighters in Afghanistan after 9/11. The military commission held pretrial proceedings this month to determine accommodations for Hadi's ailing health that would maximize his participation in a trial.
"In medical language, it's a teaching case," said retired Brig. Gen. Stephen Xenakis, who has testified on behalf of the defense teams of several detainees. "Here you've got a man who's got a problem and no matter what we have certain standards that we're supposed to adhere to."
The detention facility must plan for at least 25 more years of care, according to a July 2018 memorandum to Joint Task Force Guantanamo from then-Deputy Secretary of Defense Pat Shanahan.
COMMENT:-
There are some interesting statistics a bit further down in the article - including the 45 to 1 "Staff"/"Detainee" (or "Guard/"Prisoner" if you prefer) ratio.
But what I found most interesting is that the US government is planning on detentions that look like being 40+ years long for people whom the US government has not tried and convicted of committing any crime (and which the US government doesn't appear to have any plans to try either).