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Judge Kessler Rules that Detainee Held in Afghanistan Cannot be Transfered Without Notice to Counsel

Judge Kessler Rules that Detainee Held in Afghanistan Cannot be Transfered Without Notice to Counsel

Oct-3-07 05:44 pm

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Judge Gladys Kessler

Via Neal Sonnett, Tina Monshipour-Foster, Executive Director of the International Justice Network, has just sent out the following press release:

In an important ruling in the case of Ruzatullah V. Rumsfeld (Case Number: 1:06-cv-1707) brought by the International Justice Network (IJN) and Baach Robinson & Lewis, a Washington DC law firm, Judge Gladys Kessler of the United States District Court (D.C.) ordered that the United States can not transfer a detainee held in US custody at the base without providing 30 days notice to detainees counsel. Kessler’s groundbreaking ruling extends the power of the U.S. Courts over detainees held at the Bagram Air Force Base in Afghanistan and opens the door for attorneys to be given an opportunity to challenge any potential transfer of their clients.

Tina Monshipour-Foster, Executive Director of International Justice Network said, “Judge Kessler’s decision marks an important milestone in IJN’s challenge to the Bush Administrations practice of indefinite torture and detainment. The U.S. Government's own documents have revealed numerous instances of torture at Bagram. While the efforts to close the infamous legal black hole of Guantánamo Bay continue, Bagram and other facilities have been overlooked despite the fact that they are steadily expanding. Judge Kessler’s decision recognizes the reality that the upcoming Supreme Court decision regarding the Gitmo detainees in December will have a direct impact on our clients as well.”

The International Justice Network estimates that there are over 650 prisoners at Bagram alone – and more than 18,000 detainees being held indefinitely without charge in US-run prisons around the world.

Eric Lewis, lead counsel for a detained Afghan national, Rohullah (many Afghans have only one name) , who has been held at Bagram for over two years, hailed the opinion, "The US Government has now transferred more than 100 detainees from Bagram to a special wing at the notorious Policharky prison, which was constructed by the United States and is supervised by U.S. military personnel" <>Attorneys for the government argued that any right to challenge detainee confinement in American courts was eliminated when the U.S. transferred custody of these individuals to the Afghan government. But lawyers have argued that these transfers are a transparent attempt to avoid U.S. jurisdiction despite the fact that the U.S. government is still supervising all of the terms of prisoner confinement.

"The purpose of these transfers is to maintain these people in custody without charge and without any meaningful right to challenge the legality of their detention." Lewis said "Judge Kessler's ruling is a crucial step in requiring American officials to be accountable for their actions, whenever and wherever they arbitrarily incarcerate innocent people." Judge Kessler's ruling is the first ruling to suggest that Afghan detainees may have rights to challenge their custody by the US military in US courts.

More to follow. The opinion is not yet posted on the District Court's website.

Tags: detainees human rights civil liberties

About the editor:

Anthony Clark Arend

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Commentary and analysis at the intersection of international law and politics.

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