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Four senior prisoners at Guantanamo Bay have tested positive for coronavirus, including a man who was transferred to the base hospital for a closer look, according to a person familiar with the operations of the US military base in Cuba. include.
Military medical staff discovered a resurgence of the virus Tuesday night at Camp 5 prison, which houses 14 men detained in CIA prisons between 2002 and 2008.
By Friday, the “small number of detainees” who tested positive were “experiencing mild symptoms and their symptoms are improving,” Army spokesman Lieutenant Colonel Dustin W. Camac said.
Two of the prisoners who tested positive were identified as being accused in the death penalty case by people familiar with the situation. Abd al Rahim al NasiriIn 2000, he was accused of planning the suicide bombing of the USS Cole. walid bin atash, accused of complicity in the September 11, 2001 attacks.the other two abd al hadi al iraqHe has pleaded guilty to leading rebels in wartime Afghanistan. Guld Hassan Duran, Somali prisoner release approved If you can find it, go to a country other than your homeland.
None of the people who provided figures or information about the spread of the infection agreed to remain anonymous because they were not authorized to discuss the health care of detainees and because of the confidentiality of Camp 5.
On Friday, the base hospital’s chief medical officer, Dr. Andrew J. McDermott, confirmed a “slight increase” in COVID-19 cases at the hospital. A base where approximately 6,000 residents live. He said these numbers were “low numbers overall” and not worth further screening or masking.
Why it matters: Former CIA prisoners of war in Guantanamo are most at risk.
Former CIA prisoners are among the sickest and most vulnerable. 30 detainees remain in prison. Hadi, who was disabled in his 60s, was incontinent and paralyzed by degenerative spinal disease, and had six surgeries in Guantanamo since 2017. His doctors are discussing a seventh operation.
After Hadi was confirmed to have the virus last week, guards transferred him to a regional hospital that treats sailors, soldiers, civilian employees and families living on the base.
previous fad canceled the meeting and derailed the plans For court hearings. On Wednesday, the prison canceled all morning assemblies but allowed lawyers to visit inmates who did not test positive. Masks were mandatory.
Background: The military has remained secretive about COVID-19 in prisons.
It is not known how many detainees have been vaccinated. By 2021, the military will All but eight of the 40 detainees said The base then accepted vaccinations, but later stopped providing numbers.
After the new cases were discovered, prison warden Colonel Matthew J. Jemmott said: Mandatory for all participants in legal meetings Obtain a negative test on base and wear a mask at meetings. Little is known about how detention operations are managed, with the National Guard regularly dispatched on nine-month duty patrols and prison guards coming and going throughout the year.
The prison recently cut its total staff to 900 military and civilian, or 30 government employees for each inmate, according to Col. Kamak.
What’s next: Lawyers await information about summer hearings.
Prosecutors and lawyers have asked the military judge in Hadi’s case to cancel the August 7 hearing to work out the details of the verdict. This is the only war crimes trial at the base until mid-September.
Later in August, two other former CIA prisoners will have their cases reviewed by Virginia’s parole-style Routine Review Board. those men, Mustafa Faraj Masood Al Jadid Mohammed Libya and Muhammad Rahim Afghan citizens will be able to attend hearings from the Guantanamo Bay War Tribunal via video feed. They have never been charged with a crime and have been held as indefinite detainees in the fight against terrorism since being taken to Guantánamo in 2006 and 2008.
