BAHRAIN: NOTICE OF GUANTANAMO ADMINISTRATIVE

C O N F I D E N T I A L MANAMA 000505 SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 04/06/2015 TAGS: PTER PREL KAWC BA SUBJECT: BAHRAIN: NOTICE OF GUANTANAMO ADMINISTRATIVE REVIEW BOARD PROCEEDINGS REF: SECSTATE 57663 Classified By: Ambassador William T. Monroe for reasons 1.4 (b) and (d). ¶1. (C) The Ambassador informally raised the issue of the upcoming Guantanamo Administrative Review Board (ARB) proceedings with Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Mohammed Abdul Ghaffar on the sidelines of an event last week. PolOff delivered reftel demarche to Ministry of Foreign Affairs Assistant Undersecretary for Coordination and Follow Up Sheikh Abdul Aziz bin Mubarak Al Khalifa April 6. Sheikh Abdul Aziz said that an MFA official would contact Abdullah Al Noaimi's family members to notify them of the pending ARB proceedings and inform them that the ARB will consider any written information they may wish to submit through the GOB. ¶2. (C) Sheikh Abdul Aziz said the GOB would pass to EmbOffs any information received from the family and would also respond in writing to various items in the reftel talking points. He emphasized that the GOB was more than willing to accept responsibility for any enemy combatants returned from Guantanamo, including Al Noaimi. Sheikh Abdul Aziz stressed that it was very important to the GOB that one or more of the six Bahrainis detained in Guantanamo are either transferred or released, as appropriate. Finally, he noted that detainees of European countries were being transferred or released in greater numbers than detainees of other nationalities. MONROE