Abdumuqit Vohidov is a citizen of
Tajikistan
Tajikistan, officially the Republic of Tajikistan, is a landlocked country in Central Asia. Dushanbe is the capital city, capital and most populous city. Tajikistan borders Afghanistan to the Afghanistan–Tajikistan border, south, Uzbekistan to ...
who was held in
extrajudicial detention
Administrative detention is arrest and detention of individuals by the state without trial. A number of jurisdictions claim that it is done for security reasons. Many countries claim to use administrative detention as a means to combat terrorism ...
, for five years, in the
United States
The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...
'
Guantanamo Bay detention camp
The Guantanamo Bay detention camp, also known as GTMO ( ), GITMO ( ), or simply Guantanamo Bay, is a United States military prison within Naval Station Guantanamo Bay (NSGB), on the coast of Guantánamo Bay, Cuba. It was established in 2002 by p ...
s, in
Cuba
Cuba, officially the Republic of Cuba, is an island country, comprising the island of Cuba (largest island), Isla de la Juventud, and List of islands of Cuba, 4,195 islands, islets and cays surrounding the main island. It is located where the ...
. His Guantanamo Internment Serial Number was 90. Vohidov was returned to his native Tajikistan on 28 February 2007.
Imprisoned by the Taliban
Vohidov was one of nine former Taliban prisoners the ''
Associated Press
The Associated Press (AP) is an American not-for-profit organization, not-for-profit news agency headquartered in New York City.
Founded in 1846, it operates as a cooperative, unincorporated association, and produces news reports that are dist ...
'' pointed out had gone from Taliban custody to American custody.
[
]
The Taliban had accused Vohidov of spying for Russia, and imprisoned him for nearly three years. At
Kandahar Airfield, he complained to Cpt. Danner that he had been housed in a more humane prison by the Taliban, where he had been given a radio, fresh fruit and proper toilet facilities.
[Begg, Moazzam. ''Enemy Combatant'', 2006. p. 120]
Trial in Tajikistan
Vohidov and
Rukniddin Sharipov were to stand trial in Tajikistan.
[
They were charged with
*illegally crossing the Tajik border into Afghanistan in early 2001;
*joining fighters of the ]Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan
The Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan (IMU; uz-Cyrl-Latn, Ўзбекистон исломий ҳаракати, Oʻzbekiston islomiy harakati; ) was a militant Islamist group formed in 1998 by Islamic ideologue Tahir Yuldashev and former Soviet p ...
.
Vohidov and Sharopov received sentences of 17 years on 18 August 2007. The two men were convicted of serving as mercenaries
A mercenary is a private individual who joins an War, armed conflict for personal profit, is otherwise an outsider to the conflict, and is not a member of any other official military. Mercenaries fight for money or other forms of payment rath ...
.
Carol Rosenberg, writing in the ''Miami Herald
The ''Miami Herald'' is an American daily newspaper owned by McClatchy, The McClatchy Company and headquartered in Miami-Dade County, Florida. Founded in 1903, it is the fifth-largest newspaper in Florida, serving Miami-Dade, Broward County, Fl ...
'' on 7 July 2009, reported that Umar Abdulayev, the sole remaining Tajikistani, reported that a delegation of Tajikistani security officials threatened to retaliate against him Sharipov and Vohidov, unless they agreed to pretend to be militant jihadists, and report on real militant jihadists, following their repatriations.
McClatchy interview
On 15 June 2008, the McClatchy News Service
McClatchy Media Company, or simply McClatchy and MCC, is an American publishing company incorporated under Delaware's General Corporation Law. Originally based in Sacramento, California, United States, and known as The McClatchy Company, it b ...
published articles based on interviews with 66 former Guantanamo captives. McClatchy reporters interviewed Airat Vakhitov by telephone. Vohidov told his interviewers he was suffering ongoing mental problems, and that he was worried that if interviewers visited him in person he would be punished by Russian security officials.
Vohidov had been an imam in Tatarstan, who was imprisoned following a general round-up when Russian officials were cracking down on Chechens.[ He was temporarily freed, and fled Russia when he learned that security officials were looking for him. He said he was kidnapped by the forces of the ]Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan
The Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan (IMU; uz-Cyrl-Latn, Ўзбекистон исломий ҳаракати, Oʻzbekiston islomiy harakati; ) was a militant Islamist group formed in 1998 by Islamic ideologue Tahir Yuldashev and former Soviet p ...
, and eventually transported to Afghanistan, against his will.
2012 elections
Bridget McCormack, a candidate for a seat on the Michigan Supreme Court
The Michigan Supreme Court is the highest court in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is Michigan's court of last resort and consists of seven justices. The Court is located in the Michigan Hall of Justice at 925 Ottawa Street in Lansing, the s ...
, helped defend Vohitov, and in 2012, the Judicial Crisis Network broadcast an advertisement which criticized her for "freeing a terrorist."[ Andrew Rosenthal, of '']The New York Times
''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...
'' criticized the Judicial Crisis Network ad, which contained footage of Teri Johnson, the mother of Joseph Johnson, a GI who was killed in Afghanistan, who says: Rosenthal pointed out that Vohitov was freed through the non-judicial review, through the Office for the Administrative Review of Detained Enemy Combatants in 2007.[
]
Reports Vohidov volunteered in Iraq or Syria
In 2016, reports emerged that Vohidov had volunteered to fight in Iraq
Iraq, officially the Republic of Iraq, is a country in West Asia. It is bordered by Saudi Arabia to Iraq–Saudi Arabia border, the south, Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq border, the east, the Persian Gulf and ...
.[
]
John Kerry classes Vohidov a terrorist
On 29 June 2016, Secretary of State John Kerry
John Forbes Kerry (born December 11, 1943) is an American attorney, politician, and diplomat who served as the 68th United States secretary of state from 2013 to 2017 in the Presidency of Barack Obama#Administration, administration of Barac ...
, citing Executive Order 13224, classed Vohidov as a Specially Designated Global Terrorist
A Specially Designated Global Terrorist (SDGT) is a person or entity that has been designated as such by the United States Department of State or the U.S. Department of the Treasury. An SDGT designation is made under authority of U.S. Executive ...
.[
]
See also
* Tajikistani detainees at Guantanamo Bay
References
External links
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Vohidov, Abdumukite
Tajikistani extrajudicial prisoners of the United States
Living people
Guantanamo detainees known to have been released
Place of birth missing (living people)
Year of birth missing (living people)