Hamidullah (Bagram detainee)
Encyclopedia
Hamidullah
is a citizen of Afghanistan
who was held in extrajudicial detention
in the United States
' Bagram Theater Internment Facility
.
He was interviewed by the New York Times in November 2007, and gave an account of his detention, first in "the black prison" and then in Bagram.
On November 28, 2009, Allisa J. Rubin published an article in The New York Times
which reports on Hamidullah's description of his detention.
Rubin reported that Hamidullah was a car parts dealer.
He said he was captured in June 2009, and held until October 2009, and that he spent his first six weeks in
the "black jail
", a secret annex to the main Bagram facility, where interrogation techniques like sleep deprivation
, prohibited under the Detainee Treatment Act of 2005, were still practiced.
Rubin reported that Hamidullah described being subjected to sleep deprivation, but that while he could hear other detainees being beaten, and screaming while they were being beaten, he was not beaten himself.
He said that detainees had no access to natural light, were made to wear opaque googles, earmuffs and shackes, when being moved around, and weren't allowed to know what time it was, so they didn't know when to pray.
Hamidullah described being apprehended when his house was raided at 11:30 pm, one night in June 2009.
He and a guest were both taken away. The Americans came in three helicopters, but only one landed.
He spent 37 days in "the black prison", a prison where detainees were disoriented and sleep deprived, by loud noises, and the lack of any natural light.
He couldn't bring himself to eat the American food served there.
He said that while he wasn't beaten there, other detainees were:
Hamidullah said the black prison was also called "Tor Jail".
Hamidullah said his interrogators believed he was Faida Mohammed, because they both shared the nickname "Haji Lala".
He didn't know Faida Mohammed personally, only by reputation. He knew he had been a Taliban official, prior to the Taliban's collapse, but he knew
nothing about his subsequent activities.
Hamidullah told the New York Times he was only interrogated twice after his transfer to Bagram.
is a citizen of Afghanistan
Afghanistan
Afghanistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located in the centre of Asia, forming South Asia, Central Asia and the Middle East. With a population of about 29 million, it has an area of , making it the 42nd most populous and 41st largest nation in the world...
who was held in extrajudicial detention
Extrajudicial detention
Arbitrary or extrajudicial detention is the detention of individuals by a state, without ever laying formal charges against them.Although it has a long history of legitimate use in wartime , detention without charge, sometimes in secret, has been one of the hallmarks of totalitarian states...
in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
' Bagram Theater Internment Facility
Bagram Theater Internment Facility
The Parwan Detention Facility , also called the Bagram Theater Internment Facility, is a United States-run prison located next to Bagram Airfield in the Parwan Province of Afghanistan.It was formerly known as the Bagram Collection Point...
.
He was interviewed by the New York Times in November 2007, and gave an account of his detention, first in "the black prison" and then in Bagram.
On November 28, 2009, Allisa J. Rubin published an article in The New York Times
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
which reports on Hamidullah's description of his detention.
Rubin reported that Hamidullah was a car parts dealer.
He said he was captured in June 2009, and held until October 2009, and that he spent his first six weeks in
the "black jail
Black jail
The black jail is a US military detention camp established in 2002 inside Bagram Air Base, Afghanistan, distinct from the main prison and consisting of individual windowless concrete cells, each illuminated by a single light bulb glowing 24 hours a day....
", a secret annex to the main Bagram facility, where interrogation techniques like sleep deprivation
Sleep deprivation
Sleep deprivation is the condition of not having enough sleep; it can be either chronic or acute. A chronic sleep-restricted state can cause fatigue, daytime sleepiness, clumsiness and weight loss or weight gain. It adversely affects the brain and cognitive function. Few studies have compared the...
, prohibited under the Detainee Treatment Act of 2005, were still practiced.
Rubin reported that Hamidullah described being subjected to sleep deprivation, but that while he could hear other detainees being beaten, and screaming while they were being beaten, he was not beaten himself.
He said that detainees had no access to natural light, were made to wear opaque googles, earmuffs and shackes, when being moved around, and weren't allowed to know what time it was, so they didn't know when to pray.
Hamidullah described being apprehended when his house was raided at 11:30 pm, one night in June 2009.
He and a guest were both taken away. The Americans came in three helicopters, but only one landed.
He spent 37 days in "the black prison", a prison where detainees were disoriented and sleep deprived, by loud noises, and the lack of any natural light.
He couldn't bring himself to eat the American food served there.
He said that while he wasn't beaten there, other detainees were:
Hamidullah said the black prison was also called "Tor Jail".
Hamidullah said his interrogators believed he was Faida Mohammed, because they both shared the nickname "Haji Lala".
He didn't know Faida Mohammed personally, only by reputation. He knew he had been a Taliban official, prior to the Taliban's collapse, but he knew
nothing about his subsequent activities.
Hamidullah told the New York Times he was only interrogated twice after his transfer to Bagram.