The prisoner release is a matter of fairness,but some prisoners of Guantanamo have been dubbed “too dangerous to release,” for more than a decade.
They have been detained indefinitely. The Defence Secretary Ash Carter told US troops just a few weeks ago that. “They’ve just gotta be locked up,” he said “maybe half or so,” could be transferred out of the prison but said “roughly half of them are not safe to release, period.”
It has been observed that most of the prisoners are not that dangerous. One of the prisoner from Yemen,named Mansoor al Zahari, 36 years old is one of the youngest prisoners still held. He was held for 14 years without charge or trial, the Guantanamo Periodic Review Board moved him from the “indefinite” prisoner list.
Zahari taught himself English and now he is learning Spanish. His lawyer Beth Jacob said that Zahiri took the General Educational Developement Test (GED) curriculum at Guantanamo and he would like to go to college. He also said “Mansoor is interested in cultures and societies other than his own, and would be very happy to be given the opportunity to live in a country such as the Netherlands or Germany.”
The US has said that Zahari was “probably a low-level fighter who was aligned with al-Qaeda, although it is unclear whether he actually joined them”.
Another prisoner named Afghan Mohammed Kamin was recently cleared for transfer. “I cannot tell you how happy I am.
“I sometimes dream of being free, and am so happy; then I wake up in this facility [Guantanamo], and have a different feeling,” said Kamin, overjoyed after hearing the news of his release.
Nearly 50 men classified as “forever prisoners” are still waiting for a chance to have their cases heard. Most of the cases are in favour of the prisoner.
The “forever prisoners” have appeared before the parole and recommended for transfer from the facility.
The board is likely to look I to the matter. The board includes one senior official from each of the six agencies with a stake in US national security, including the Department of Defense and Homeland Security.
A former senior US government official who is personally familiar with many of these Guantanamo cases
Said. “Honestly I don’t believe all are too dangerous to release.”
The former official added, “I am not really convinced… I would want to see their cases heard in court. I would like to see a determination of their status as being ‘too dangerous to release’…determined in court” in a civilian or
military one.