Moroccan-born Younis Abdurrahman Chekkouri [7], who spent 13 years in the Guantánamo Bay prison, was released [8] Sept. 17 as part of the Obama administration [9]'s effort to wind down and eventually close the detention center. The US never formally charged Chekkouri with a crime, but according to military documents [10] he was believed to have been an associate of Osama bin Laden and to have run al-Qaeda training camps in Afghanistan. Chekkouri was cleared for release by the Guantanamo Review Task Force (PDF [11]) in January 2010. Rights group Reprieve [12] after his release reported [13] that he was still being held by local authorities in his native Morocco. The prisoner release is the first since June, when six Guantanamo detainees were transferred [14] to Oman. The prison's population is now reduced to to 115.
The Guantánamo Bay prison was set up in 2002 by the Bush administration as a facility to hold the most dangerous terrorism suspects. At its peak in 2003, the prison had a population of 684 inmates. When Obama took office in 2008, one of his first directives [15] was to close the facility, but he has faced considerable opposition [16] in achieving that goal. On July 1, US Secretary of State John Kerry appointed [17] Lee Wolowsky to effectuate the closure of the Guantánamo prison. In August, White House spokesperson Josh Earnest said President Barack Obama is considering a "wide array" of options [18] for closing the prison.
From Jurist [19], Sept. 18. Used with permission.
