US embassy cable - 05MANAMA392

C O N F I D E N T I A L MANAMA 000392 
 
SIPDIS 
 
STATE FOR NEA/ARPI, S/WCI 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 03/15/2015 
TAGS: PTER, KAWC, PINR, PREL, BA 
SUBJECT: BAHRAIN:  INTERAGENCY BRIEFING TEAM ON GUANTANAMO 
ISSUES 
 
REF: STATE 45507 
 
Classified by Ambassador William T. Monroe for reasons 1.4 
(b) and (d). 
 
1.  (C) Post welcomes DOD's offer to lead an interagency team 
to discuss the status of the six Bahraini detainees at 
Guantanamo (reftel).  Senior government officials regularly 
raise the detainees in meetings with the Ambassador and 
EmbOffs, most recently today, March 16, and the press covers 
the issue from many perspectives - actions of the families, 
the GOB, the USG, Bahraini human rights activists, American 
lawyers, and related legal developments in the American court 
system or at GTMO.  The March 16 Bahrain Tribune ran a banner 
headline article saying that Bahraini detainees at GTMO could 
be released soon following "great advances" in GOB 
negotiations with U.S. authorities, according to Ministry of 
Interior Acting Chief of Legal Affairs Col. Mohammed Rashid 
Buhumood.  Bahrain's newspapers prominently covered a March 
11 New York Times article claiming that the Pentagon seeks to 
transfer more than half of the detainees to the custody of 
foreign governments.  In addition, the Gulf Daily News ran a 
four-part series March 12-15 on alleged mistreatment of 
Bahraini detainee Juma Al Dossary and Abdulla Majid Al 
Nuaimi.  According to the articles, the source of the 
information was the American lawyer representing the Bahraini 
detainees, Dorsey and Whitney attorney Joshua 
Colangelo-Bryan, who visited GTMO in October 2004 and plans 
to visit again shortly. 
 
2.  (C) The interagency team should be prepared to brief the 
GOB in some detail about the charges against the detainees 
and specific conditions for their release or transfer to a 
detention facility in Bahrain.  If they will remain at GTMO, 
the team should explain the reasons.  The visit could raise 
GOB expectations of negotiations for the return of the 
detainees to Bahrain, particularly in light of the New York 
Times article, and we would have to manage these expectations 
carefully.  In this context, a presentation that is limited 
to the Combatant Status Review Tribunal or Administrative 
Review Board processes risks being counterproductive and 
could expose senior Bahraini officials to further public 
criticism.  We would approve a visit designed to address the 
future of Bahraini detainees at GTMO, whether they will be 
released, under what conditions, and if not, then why not. 
 
3.  (C) In response to reftel question, post would want the 
interagency team to interact with GOB officials only.  There 
would be no upside for the USG from meeting with 
parliamentarians or journalists.  The GOB would want to 
callibrate how and when to report any positive movement on 
the status of the detainees to parliament and the local press 
to demonstrate it is doing all it can on behalf of its 
citizens. 
 
MONROE