12-01-2005 04:37									#1
	Australian Gitmo inmate to be released Support Apolyton, buy Alpha Centauri

Mamdouh Habib was arrested in Pakistan 3 years ago on a bus. He said he was in Pakistan looking for an Islamic school for his children. The Pakistani authorities were more interested in 2 Germans on the bus but Habib stepped in to defend them and the Pakistani Police said, "right, we'll take you too."

Habib is a duel Australian/Egyptian citizen. The Pakistanis, after torturing him themselves, handed him over to the Egyptians who tortured him over 6 months. It is alleged this was part of the US "rendition" program where prisoners are sent to other countries for torture.

He signed certain confessions under torture in Egypt and was sent to Guantanamo Bay where other released prisoners claim he was further tortured and mistreated.

After 3 years of this treatment he is being released without charge by the US.

His physical and mental health is said to be poor.

In Australia he was a cleaner.

http://www.theaustralian.news.com.a...255E601,00.html

One Australian remains in US custody at Gitmo.

	12-01-2005 05:56									#2
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Poor guy. And so innocent! I'm fairly convinced he's the best thing to have happened to this world since Gandhi. Only the evil Americans would even consider holding a saint captive like that.

Congratulations Australia on getting him back and setting him free in society to start over his peaceful activities where he left off.

	12-01-2005 06:02									#3
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"Australian Gitmo inmate to be released"

Yes, but at what cost...?

	12-01-2005 06:20									#4
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quote: Originally posted by Winston Poor guy. And so innocent! I'm fairly convinced he's the best thing to have happened to this world since Gandhi. Only the evil Americans would even consider holding a saint captive like that. Congratulations Australia on getting him back and setting him free in society to start over his peaceful activities where he left off.

The man seems to have been a bit of a loud mouth and an idiot, he's had mental problems in the past, but leaving aside the torture allegations does that justify holding him in Gitmo for 3 years without charge?

He faces no charges in Australia either.

	12-01-2005 06:31									#5
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Apparently the US believed it did. But we all know how distrustful they are. Especially when it comes to international terrorism, national security, ridiculous stuff like that.

If the man says he was on a bus looking for school opportunities for his children, it must be true. I mean, what reason could he possibly have had to make things up?

	12-01-2005 06:32									#6
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You should be ashamed for it. That guy is your own citizen, he has paid taxes for your govt. Plus the fact that the US do not seem to trust even their closest allies to check on their own citizens for terrorists.

	12-01-2005 06:34									#7
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quote: Originally posted by Winston Apparently the US believed it did.

So much so that they're leting him walk away.

	12-01-2005 06:40									#8
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quote: Originally posted by General Ludd So much so that they're leting him walk away.

They let a Danish prisoner go too last year. Upon his return to Denmark he promptly went on national television and exercised his right to free speech by strongly supporting Islam's holy war on the West, and he is now believed to have left for Chechnya to help blow up things and shoot the infidels where it's most needed.

We can only hope that eventually all the internees are set free, and able to return to business as usual. Being held in a prison camp in Cuba is a terrible thing when you'd much rather be out there in the real world making a difference.

	12-01-2005 07:01									#9
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Your mother loses a few pieces of jewellery and we're all supposed to feel sorry for her. A man is held in hell holes for 3 years and you don't care and blow it off?

	12-01-2005 07:16									#10
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Heh, that sounded just a little desperate AH.

	12-01-2005 07:30									#11
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not really - they are your double standards not mine

	12-01-2005 07:31									#12
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quote: Originally posted by Winston They let a Danish prisoner go too last year. Upon his return to Denmark he promptly went on national television and exercised his right to free speech by strongly supporting Islam's holy war on the West, and he is now believed to have left for Chechnya to help blow up things and shoot the infidels where it's most needed.

They probably forgot to ask, "no hard feelings, eh?"

	12-01-2005 07:35									#13
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You really insist on bringing an unfortunate incident in my closest family into this?

Ok, where did I request any sympathy, least of all from you of all people?

And how exactly do you figure the two matters correspond in any way?

Continuous threadjacking of one's own thread (on a serious matter) within a dozen posts from the OP, seems even more desperate. I'm sure you will also start to realise this at some point...

	12-01-2005 07:36									#14
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Many of the prisoners being released are like this Australian - just nobodies caught up in a witchhunt.

The US recently admitted that the majority of inmates had no intelligence of any value.

	12-01-2005 07:39									#15
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quote: Originally posted by Alexander's Horse Many of the prisoners being released are like this Australian - just nobodies caught up in a witchhunt.

That really depends on whose version of what went before you choose to believe doesn't it?

	12-01-2005 07:51									#16
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Not the really Winston - the USG has admitted as much.

Once US courts ruled that the prisoners had rights the game was pretty much up.

	12-01-2005 08:09									#17
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And that's why I started out congratulating you and your countrymen on his return. This is a happy day for Australia, getting an obviously innocent, persecuted citizen free from the clutches of evil.

Now, only time will tell if he's managed to keep intact his conviction, fighting spirit and ambitions while being detained and abused by those moronic Americans. That was the case with the innocent Danish victim released last year, but there's no guarantee. One can only hope.

	12-01-2005 08:30									#18
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I detect sarcasm.

	12-01-2005 09:49									#19
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He's not clever enough for that.

	12-01-2005 09:59									#20
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Sounds like AH needs to chill and perhaps even do a little gardening or something.

	12-01-2005 10:03									#21
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Gitmo

The US is just shooting itself in the foot by having what is by definition a concentration camp and "military" justice ( a contradiction in terms if ever I saw one)

	12-01-2005 10:07									#22
	Support Apolyton or Terrorists Win

Winston,

The US DID **** UP this time.

That prisoner is not the only one, and when he starts talking, we are going to hear about it.

Our very closest allies, Canada, Austraila, and the UK, have all pressured us to release Guantanamo prisoners, because we have held them against their will, without charging them, and without a fair trial.


I am telling all of you guys right now. Listen now and listen carefully. Abu Gharib is just the tip of the iceberg.

There is sh1t going down since 9/11 that we have been doing and it is outright dispicable. We transport prisoners, sometimes those who haven't even been charged to countries like Egypt, where we can torture them. This is a worldwide network and it has been going on for 3 years.


The US, we are the bad guys this time.

We have become everything we were taught as children to despise.

My country has disgraced itself and things just continue to get worse.

Instead of doing the right thing, people are now concerned with covering their asses.

This is like a bad nightmare come true.

	12-01-2005 10:09									#23
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Now we are putting the same ******* who said, "forget about the Geneva Convention," into office as the highest "defender of justice," in the whole world.

	12-01-2005 10:10									#24
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Couldn't have put it better myself, nicely done

Frankly, it scares me... how much further until something of truly Orwellian proportions occurs? Justice is the only thing stopping this from happening (free speech, presumption of innocence), but when it's bastardised like this i.e. can be found innocent by military tribunal but still held, or found guilty by biased judge and jury, where defendent is presumed to be guilty, and can be executed accordingly... that's surely the precursor to something even worse .

	12-01-2005 10:11									#25
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Another lie we were all told:


We were told the people sent to Guantanamo were, "THE WORST OF THE WORST."

I looked the other way, believing this to be true. Now I find out, once again, that we have been lied to.

The worst of the worst, well they weren't before, but I'm sure they are now after we have given them 10 trillion reasons to hate us now.

	12-01-2005 10:32									#26
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quote: Originally posted by Alexander's Horse The US recently admitted that the majority of inmates had no intelligence of any value.

Of course they didn't have any intelligence, otherwise they wouldn't have been caught.



ACK!

	12-01-2005 10:32									#27
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Ashcroft has detained over 5,000 foreign nationals in relation to terrorism since 9/11. Two of them have been convicted of terrorist crimes. Both convictions have been overturned.

	12-01-2005 10:35									#29
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Regarding the outsourcing of torture, there was an interesting Times of London article about these "torture flights" a couple months back:

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/articl...1357699,00.html

	12-01-2005 10:35									#30
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Waahh. Heaven forbid that the US and its WOT allies take enemy combattants prisoner and hold them for a couple of years in less than five star quality accomodation.

Of course nobody can guarantee that all of them had by their actions merited apprehension, and many have been released (some of them also as "gestures" to allies), but I'm with the US authorities on this, conditions being as they were it was better to be safe than sorry.

Or would you rather the US and allies hadn't taken any prisoners at all that couldn't be brought before a judge, for reasons of confidentiality/sensitivity or hopes of extracting knowledge of enemy infrastructure etc.?

These guys in Guantanamo aren't wrongfully imprisoned suspects or anything of the sort, they're known enemy combattants.

Save the massive indignation for a human rights cause that actually generates true sympathy for the victims, not just knee-jerk anti-Bush admin reactions. It's not that there aren't enough to choose from in the world today.