Abdullah Mujahid - Combatant Status Review

Combatant Status Review

The Bush administration asserted that:

the protections of the Geneva Conventions did not extend to captured prisoners who are not members of the regular Afghan armed force nor meet the criteria for prisoner of war for voluntary forces.

Critics argued the Conventions obliged the U.S. to conduct competent tribunals to determine the status of prisoners. Subsequently, the U.S. Department of Defense instituted Combatant Status Review Tribunals (CSRTs), to determine whether detainees met the new definition of an "enemy combatant".

"Enemy combatant" was defined by the U.S. Department of Defense as:

an individual who was part of, or supporting, the Taliban, or al-Qaeda forces, or associated forces that are engaged in hostilities against the United States or its coalition partners. This includes any person who commits a belligerent act or has directly supported hostilities in aid of enemy armed forces.

The CSRTs are not bound by the rules of evidence that would normally apply in civilian court, and the government’s evidence is presumed to be “genuine and accurate.” From July 2004 through March 2005, CSRTs were convened to determine whether each prisoner had been correctly classified as an "enemy combatant".

Abdullah Mujahid was among the 60% of prisoners who chose to participate in tribunal hearings. A Summary of Evidence memo was prepared for the tribunal of each detainee, listing the allegations that supported their detention as an "enemy combatant".

Abdullah Mujahid's memo accused him of the following:

a. The detainee is associated with al Qaida:

1. After the fall of the Taliban, the detainee served as a police force commander in Gardez, Afghanistan.
2. The detainee was fired from his appointed position due to suspicions of collusion with anti-government forces.
3. The detainee has been a member of Harakat-e-Mulavi for at least the last four years.
4. Harakat-e-Mulavi is an extremist group that is known to have ties with al Qaida and the Taliban.

b. The detainee participated in military operations against the United States or its coalition partners.

1. The detainee was responsible for an attack on US Forces in the vicinity of Gardeyz City, Afghanistan.
2. The detainee was responsible for this attack in retaliation for being fired.
3. The detainee was captured by U.S forces in July 2003.