Although his release was ordered by a federal judge, the us government. After voluntarily submitting himself for questioning in his home country in 2001, he was detained in jordan and the bagram prison in afghanistan before being sent to guantanamo. Guantanamo bay navy base, cuba the prisoner who wrote guantanamo diary, a memoir of fear and forgiveness in the war on terror, was sent home monday to his native mauritania in west africa. Guantanamo diary author mohamedou ould slahi freed after 14 years. Jan 26, 2015 mohamedou ould slahis memoir, guantanamo diary, was published after a sevenyear legal battle and with heavy redactions from military censors. How guantanamo diary escaped the black hole and got past the. Oct 25, 2017 mohamedou slahi at the desk where he used to sit in high school. The tragedy of slahi s memoir is not just his grave abuse at the hands of u.
Alka pradhan, reuters guantanamo diary stands as perhaps the most human depiction of an entire post911 system. Enter the handwritten diary of mohamedou ould slahi, a guantanamo detainee since 2002. My guantanamo diary, uncensored american civil liberties. This week, the bestselling memoir he wrote from prison was rereleased with the u. Oct 17, 2016 mohamedou ould slahi, whose 2015 guantanamo diary memoir yielded a new wave of global outrage over guantanamo bay, is now free in his native mauritania, his us attorney nancy hollander confirmed. After nearly seven years of intense litigation, the manuscript of the captives diary was released by u. Nancy hollander and hina shamsi talked about mohamedou slahi and his book, guanta. Feb, 2015 guantanamo diary with the words of mohamedou ould slahi based on that history, the government concluded that mr. By mohamedou ould slahi for aclu if i wanted to, i could put my pen down right now, close my office door behind me, and go for a long walk outside. Guantanamo diary detainee mohamedou ould slahi youtube. Slahis book, the first and only memoir by a stillimprisoned guantanamo detainee, was published in january 2015 with numerous redactions from a 466page handwritten manuscript.
Jan 21, 2015 diary of guantanamo bay inmate mohamedou ould slahi details forced sex, smothering. In all these years, the united states has never charged him with a crime. Jan 20, 2015 guantanamo diary by mohamedou ould slahi and larry siems editor is a very thoughtprovoking and disturbing book. Mohamedou ould slahi s guantanamo diary one mans account of rendition, torture and detention without charge at the hands of the us watch video. Mohamedou ould slahi voluntarily turned himself in for questioning to police in his native mauritania on nov. Jan 20, 2015 mohamedou ould slahis guantanamo diary was finally published with some redactions after years of litigation to declassify it. After fourteen years of being held in guantanamo without charge or trial, mohamedou ould slahi has been released and reunited with his family in mauritiania. He was prohibited from receiving a copy of his published book while imprisoned. Mohamedou ould slahi returned to his native mauritania monday after 14 years in u.
Mohamedou slahi at the desk where he used to sit in high school. Salhi wrote four other books whilst in detention, one of which he describes as being about finding happiness in a hopeless place. Perhaps most one of the most powerful books ive read in recent years. After spending 14 years in guantanamo bay, guantanamo diary author mohamedou slahi has been released to his native mauritania. Slahi, a slender, cleanshaven 45yearold mauritanian, sat quietly behind a sign identifying him as detainee, dressed in a shortsleeved white. Guantanamo diary audiobook, written by mohamedou ould. Diary of guantanamo bay inmate mohamedou ould slahi details. It was an international bestseller and has since been translated into multiple languages for publication in more than 25 countries. Jan 31, 2015 the first word of guantanamo diary is a black bar the book, in which guantanamo detainee mohamedou ould slahi tells of his odyssey through overseas prisons and his torture and abuse by the us. Slahi book was published in january 2015, and quickly became a bestseller, although the content is not vetted or verified, and is overshadowed by directives in a captured al qaeda training manual which specifically instructs the brothers to lie about their treatment in captivity.
When slahi quotes the language inflicted upon him by interrogators and guards at gtmo, it is obvious that the same debasement of english occurred there, too. Yahdih ould slahi displays redacted passages from the diary of his brother, mohamedou ould slahi, who has been held since 2002 at guantanamo. Author of guantanamo diary released from military prison. Apr 30, 20 mohamedou ould slahi voluntarily turned himself in for questioning to police in his native mauritania on nov. Slahis voice from page to page is funny, selfdeprecating, intelligent, generous, and very painful to read. In guantanamo diary, slahi traces his journey after the sept. His memoir is a terrifying personal story of abduction, detention, and torture in.
Salahi is the first detainee to publish a memoir while imprisoned. Guantanamo diary author mohamedou slahi freed cnnpolitics. Slahi has been imprisoned without charge for over years. A guantanamo diary from a prisoner still on the inside. Guantanamo diary, by mohamedou ould slahi the new york times. Diary of guantanamo bay inmate mohamedou ould slahi. Diary of guantanamo bay inmate mohamedou ould slahi details forced sex, smothering.
And freedom is choosing to write instead, not because my life depends on it, but. It is that slahi s account of lifeif it can be called thatat guantanamo is not the exception. When it was published in january 2015, heavily redacted by government censors, the book made slahi. Today in nouakchott, mauritania, it is terribly hot and dry, so that would not be the wisest choice, but freedom is having that option. My guantanamo diary, uncensored common dreams views.
The book has been slow to appear in part because, for a long time, it was classified. Arrested again and then held, although the government where he was arrested could not understand why he was arrested but they were doing it for the americans. Mohamedou ould slahi was released one year ago from the prison at guantanamo bay, after 14 years without charge or trial. That afternoon, back in my home, i held a copy of guantanamo diary for the first time. Slahi, an electrical engineer, was arrested in his native mauritania in 2001 at. Guantanamo diary, by mohamedou ould slahi financial times. Slahis guantanamo diary is perhaps most similar in voice and material to solzhenitsyns one day in the life of ivan denisovich but retold for our current postsoviet, war on terror context. A guantanamo detainee endures a hellish ordeal in this riveting prison diary. Feb 15, 2015 guantanamo diary is the most profound account yet written of what it is like to be that collateral damage. Oct 24, 2017 mohamedou slahi at the desk where he used to sit in high school. Guantanamo diary by mohamedou ould slahi, larry siems. Guantanamo diary author cleared for release by military. The author of an internationally bestselling memoir about life in guantanamo bay has been released after enduring 14 years and severe torture at the us detention center. Oct 17, 2016 mohamedou ould slahi returned to his native mauritania monday after 14 years in u.
Guantanamo diary is the most profound account yet written of what it is like to be that collateral damage. Slahi an aclu client arrived at the prison in august 2002. From may 2003 through early 2004, he was subject to a. Guantanamo diary detainee makes the case for his release. Slahi was a senior recruiter for al qaeda and for a time, listed him as the. If i wanted to, i could put my pen down right now, close my office door behind me, and go for a long walk outside.
My guantanamo diary paperback june 23, 2009 by mahvish khan author 4. S militarys guantanamo bay detention center is held without charges for over a decade and seeks help from a defense attorney for his release. Mohamedou ould slahi, who has been held in the guantanamo detention camp without charge or trial since 2002, has been transferred back to his home country of mauritania. Oct 27, 2017 my guantanamo diary, uncensored by mohamedou ould slahi, aclu, october 23, 2017. One fall day years ago mohamedou ould slahi, a 30yearold electrical engineer and telecommunications specialist, received a visit at his house in noakchott, mauritania. My lawyers had shown me photographs of the book on the shelves of bookstores in several cities and languages, and they were able to bring me a photocopy of my text, with all of the. Slahi emerges from the pages of his diary, handwritten in 2005, as a curious and generous personality, observant, witty and devout. Slahi wrote a memoir in 2005 while imprisoned, which the u. Oct 17, 2016 after spending 14 years in guantanamo bay, guantanamo diary author mohamedou slahi has been released to his native mauritania. Review of guantanamo diary 2 flash qfiasco debased, permeated with malice and insult. His extraordinary account, handwritten over 466 pages from his single cell at camp echo in 2005, is finally being. Releases mohamedou ould slahi, author of guantanamo.
It is a chilling story of the united states worst abuses in the post911 era. Guantanamo diary author mohamedou ould slahi freed after 14. Jun 02, 2016 slahi, a slender, cleanshaven 45yearold mauritanian, sat quietly behind a sign identifying him as detainee, dressed in a shortsleeved white shirt and glasses, his arms folded on the. Jan 20, 2015 our exclusive animated documentary about mohamedou ould slahis memoir, guantanamo diary, and its extraordinary eightyear journey from inside the us detention facility to worldwide publication. Feb, 2015 guantanamo diary, mohamedou ould slahis extraordinary account of rendition, captivity and torture reveals, more vividly than any book in the previous decade of shockandawe ferocity, how he.
Jan 23, 2015 guantanamo diary, by mohamedou ould slahi, edited by larry siems, canongate, rrp. Yet slahi, an unlikely bestselling author after his 2015 memoir, guantanamo diary, made him the highestprofile detainee unconnected to the 911 plot, contends that he seeks only to reunite with his children, start a small business and write books in his postguantanamo. Mohamedou ould slahi was detained at guantanamo bay for 14 years. Jan 20, 2015 in guantanamo diary, slahi traces his journey after the sept. Guantanamo diary by mohamedou ould slahi the new york times. Guantanamo diary author mohamedou ould slahi freed after. The diary of a guantanamo bay prisoner paints a disturbing picture of mistreatment and torture, and details how. The memoir, written by slahi, is edited and formatted by editor larry siems. With shailene woodley, benedict cumberbatch, zachary levi, jodie foster.
Releases mohamedou ould slahi, author of guantanamo diary. Guantanamo diary, by mohamedou ould slahi the new york. Guantanamo diary goes through the looking glass miami herald. In 2005, slahi wrote a 446page handwritten account of his imprisonment, titled guantanamo diary. His memoir is a terrifying personal story of abduction, detention, and torture in four countries. Guantanamo diary with the words of mohamedou ould slahi based on that history, the government concluded that mr. Guantanamo diary read mohamedou ould slahi s original handwritten manuscript. The memoir was published as guantanamo diary in january 2015 and became an international bestseller. My guantanamo diary, uncensored american civil liberties union. One fall day years ago mohamedou ould slahi, a 30yearold electrical engineer. Guantanamo bay prisoner mohamedou ould slahi, author of guantanamo diary, has been cleared for release by the u. Oct 18, 2016 in 2005, slahi wrote a 446page handwritten account of his imprisonment, titled guantanamo diary. Slahi is still living in the same rooma small, freestanding prison hutin which he wrote guantanamo diary, in 2005, before passing it to his lawyers. Slahi, a mauritanian engineer who has been imprisoned without.
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