130 | Towards the Closure of Guantanamo
323. The U.S. Office of the Director of National Intelligence regularly releases an
unclassified “Summary of the Reengagement of Detainees Formerly Held at
Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.” The last report, dated July 15, 2014, indicates that 17.3%
of former detainees have “reengaged” in terrorist or insurgent activities, and that
12.4% are suspected of doing so. The numbers for those detainees transferred after
January 22, 2009, (date of the adoption of new guidelines to govern the transfer of
detainees) are considerably lower (6.8% and 1.1% respectively). 393 Accordingly,
only six former Guantanamo detainees released after January 22, 2009, reportedly
engaged in terrorist or insurgent activities. The names of the detainees have not
been publicly released. The New America Foundation created a list of former
detainees who have “returned to the battlefield.” According to this research, as of
June 5, 2014, 3.6% of former Guantanamo detainees were reported to be engaging
in militant activities against U.S. and non-U.S. targets (all of them released from
Guantanamo before 2007) and 4.6% were suspected of doing so. 394
324. The IACHR notes with concern that by the end of 2014 there remained
approximately 30 detainees who had once been charged but are not currently
considered for prosecution or who were still under the category of “continued law
of war detention” in an ever-evolving armed conflict. The IACHR is also troubled by
the fact that those detainees with respect to whom the PRB determined that
continued detention remained necessary (four as of December 2014) will have to
wait three years until a new full review would be conducted. This means that some
detainees will have to wait until 2018 to have their status reviewed. The IACHR
notes that semi-annual file reviews only focus on new information or change of
circumstances.
325. Finally, with regard to the risk of “recidivism,” the IACHR points out that the use of
this term is erroneous. The term recidivism implies that the person has been
convicted of a criminal offense and has reengaged in illegal conduct. These former
Guantanamo detainees, however, have never been tried.
393
394
Office of the Director of National Intelligence, Summary of the Reengagement of Detainees Formerly Held at
Guantanamo
Bay,
Cuba,
as
of
July
15,
2014.
Available
at:
http://www.dni.gov/files/documents/September_2014_GTMO%20Unclass%20Release.pdf
New America Foundation, Appendix: How Dangerous are Freed Guantanamo Prisoners?, by Peter Bergen and
Bailey
Cahall,
June
5,
2014.
Available
at:
http://newamerica.net/publications/resources/2014/how_many_guantanamo_detainees_return_to_the_bat
tlefield
Organization of American States | OAS
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