14 GUANTANAMO DETAINEES TRANSFERED TO SAUDI

C O N F I D E N T I A L RIYADH 005220 SIPDIS SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 07/02/2016 TAGS: KISL KPAO PGOV PREL KAWC MOPS PTER SA XF SUBJECT: 14 GUANTANAMO DETAINEES TRANSFERED TO SAUDI AUTHORITY REF: A. STATE 96345 ¶B. RIYADH 4919 Classified By: Ambassador James C. Oberwetter for reasons 1.4 (b) and ( d). ¶1. (C) Summary and Comment: On June 25, 14 Guantanamo detainees were transferred to Saudi authority, including a non-Saudi citizen, Ahmad Sadik Turkestani. The Ministry of Interior (MOI) has told EmbOffs that all of the detainees will be further incarcerated in the Kingdom until the SAG rules they are eligible for release and reintegration into society. The detainees arrived in the Kingdom in the middle of the night with no media fanfare or public demonstrations. However, the Saudi public continues to question the cause of death of the three detainees that committed suicide, and some 5,000 people attended the funeral in Medina of one of the deceased Saudis. End Summary and Comment. ¶2. (C) On June 25, late at night, 14 Guantanamo detainees arrived in Saudi Arabia via a Ministry of Interior (MOI) chartered Saudi Arabian Airlines 747 jet. The MOI has told EmbOffs that all of the transferees will be detained in the Kingdom until the SAG judges they are ready to be released and reintegrated into society. The SAG officially views terrorists as "deviants" who have strayed from the true path of Islam, and the MOI attempts to reform such individuals through consultations with right-minded clerics. Upon release, "reformed" terrorists are often provided with a government-provided stipend, job-training and other educational opportunities to help re-establish their lives The MOI has indicated that the former Guantanamo detainees will be treated in the same manner -- incarceration, counseling, and, if appropriate, release and reintegration into society. ¶3. (C) The 14 detainees included one non-Saudi citizen, Ahmad Sadik Turkestani, who was born and raised in the Saudi city of Taif, where all of his family live. The SAG had initially refused to allow Turkestani to return to the Kingdom because he was not a citizen. However, after consultations with senior level USG officials, the SAG relented, and allowed Turkestani to return. Although the USG had determined that Turkestani was "no longer an enemy combatant" and we did not request his incarceration in the Kingdom, the MOI intends to detain him indefinitely. ¶4. (C) Comment: The June 25 transfer of detainees occurred the week after the repatriation of remains of the two Saudis who committed suicide at Guantanamo, and nearly two months after the previous transfer of 15 Saudis. The SAG has taken measures to minimize a hostile public reaction, and MOI has coordinated all of the arrivals into the Kingdom to take place in the middle of the night with no media or fanfare. The families of the transferred detainees have been notified individually and the press coverage has not incited a mass public outcry. However, the Saudi public remains suspicious of the cause of death of the three detainees that committed suicide, and the Saudi media reported that approximately 5,000 people attended the funeral in Medina of Yasser al-Zahrani (Septel). End Comment. ¶5. (U) The 14 transferred detainees are: AL HAWSAWI, Musa Abed - ISN 058 NUR, Yusef Khalil Abdallah - ISN 073 ATABY, Mohammed Surur Dakhilallah - ISN 096 GHETAN, Abdul - ISN 132 BA'AWDA, Ali Ahmad Salih Ba'Awda - ISN 184 AL KHATAMI, Saleh - ISN 191 AL RAHMAN, Abd Al Aziz Abd Al Baddah - ISN 264 Al HARBI, Tariq Salah Husan - ISN 265 AL GHANAMI, Abdullah Muhammed - ISN 266 AL NASIR, Ibrahim Muhammed Ibrahim - ISN 271 AL BEDNA, Saad - ISN 337 AL WASSIM, Hussim - ISN 338 QA ID, Rashid Abd Al Muslih Qa Id Al - ISN 344 TURKISTANI, Sadik Ahmad - ISN 491 OBERWETTER