Syria Today | Syrian prisoner held at Guantánamo suicidal

Syrian prisoner held at Guantánamo suicidal

Harsh treatment and isolation at Guantánamo Bay has driven a Syrian prisoner to attempt suicide, the AP news agency reported on February 6. The suicide attempt was made public by the prisoner’s lawyer who is seeking an emergency court order to improve his client’s conditions.

Mohammad Khan Tumani and his father have been held without charge at Guantánamo for the past seven years. Tumani needs an independent medical assessment and should be moved to a less restrictive area of the prison, his lawyers said in a motion filed in a federal court in Washington.

Tumani’s lawyer claims the 26-year-old Syrian prisoner has been showing “clear signs of mental deterioration”, by banging his head for hours on end against his cell and smearing the walls with excrement. They say Tumani slit his wrists in December last year in an attempt to commit suicide.

“His condition is spiralling downward and has been for a while,” Tumani’s lawyer Pardiss Kebriaei said. He added his client has also been subjected to “coercive interrogations” and abuse.

Kebriaei has asked the court to allow Tumani to meet with his father to ease his sense of isolation. The pair have been kept separate from each other throughout their time at Guantánamo, Kebriaei said.

Guantánamo spokeswoman Pauline Storum denied Tumani has attempted suicide, calling it a “minor cut on his arm”. She also said the prisoner told doctors at the detention centre he does not suffer from any mental health problems.

“This detainee remains in good physical and mental health and like all detainees his health and well-being are closely monitored,” she said.

Tumani is being held in Camp 6, a section of the prison which has come under heavy fire from human rights groups who say the solid-walled cells where detainees spend their time are equivalent to solitary confinement. In Camp 4, where Tumani’s father is being held, prisoners live in dorm-like units and can spend time outdoors.

US officials have yet to respond to Kebriaei’s motion, but he said government lawyers have indicated they will oppose it.

US President Barack Obama has ordered Guantánamo to be closed by the end of the year. Human rights activists claim that conditions for many of the nearly 245 men still held at Guantánamo continue to be abusive. The US military denies this, insisting the prison complies with international standards.