Dear Friends,

The Biden Administration recently announced that it has transferred Mohammed al-Qahtani out of Guantanamo to Saudi Arabia. Al-Qahtani is severely mentally ill, and in Saudi Arabia he will be able to receive mental health care that he cannot receive in Guantanamo. This is the second detainee released from Guantanamo by President Biden.

Al-Qahtani was tortured in U.S. custody. He was subjected to sleep deprivation and dehydration, and he was forced to bark like a dog and wear women's underwear on his head, among other abuses. His torture exacerbated his mental illness. It was severe enough that in 2008, the Bush Administration official overseeing the military commissions at Guantanamo, Susan Crawford, concluded that he could never be prosecuted in a court of law. Despite that finding, he remained in Guantanamo nearly 14 more years.

NRCAT and human rights groups have long advocated that Congress support transferring detainees out of Guantanamo – especially those urgently in need of medical care. Please write to your Members of Congress today to show your support for closing the prison at Guantanamo and ensuring that the brutal torture like that endured by Mohammed al-Qahtani is never again used by the U.S.

Sincerely,

Matt Hawthorne
Policy Director