The Darunta training camp ''(also transliterated as Derunta)'' was one of the most well-known of many military

training camps A training camp is an organized period in which military personnel or athletes participate in a rigorous and focused schedule of training in order to learn or improve skills. Athletes typically utilise training camps to prepare for upcoming events, ...

that have been alleged to have been affiliated with

al Qaeda Al-Qaeda (; , ) is an Islamic extremist organization composed of Salafist jihadists. Its members are mostly composed of Arabs, but also include other peoples. Al-Qaeda has mounted attacks on civilian and military targets in various countr ...

Training with poisons

CNN published a story in which they claimed to have acquired videotapes showing al Qaeda experiments poisoning dogs with

chemical weapon A chemical weapon (CW) is a specialized munition that uses chemicals formulated to inflict death or harm on humans. According to the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW), this can be any chemical compound intended as ...

s, at Darunta.Disturbing scenes of death show capability with chemical gas
, '' CNN'', August 19, 2002

Location

The camp is reported to have been near

Jalalabad Jalalabad (; Dari/ ps, جلال‌آباد, ) is the fifth-largest city of Afghanistan. It has a population of about 356,274, and serves as the capital of Nangarhar Province in the eastern part of the country, about from the capital Kabul. Jal ...

. According to ''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper A newspaper is a periodical publication containing written information about current events and is often typed in black ink with a white or gray background. Newspapers can cover a wide ...

'', it was 15 miles from

, just north of the village of

Darunta Darūnṭa ( ps, درونټه) (or Khayrow Khel), also spelled Daruntah or Derunta, is a village in Jalalabad District of Nangarhar province. It is located next to Jalalabad city on route AO1 in Afghanistan. Numerous remains of stupas from the 1s ...

across the dam.Al-Qaeda's trail of terror
''

'', November 18, 2001 According to a paper by

Hekmat Karzai Hekmat Khalil Karzai is the deputy foreign minister of Afghanistan. He was appointed as the deputy foreign minister on 21 January 2015. At the ministry, he has chaired several national and international processes/forums including Heart of Asia ...

, published by the Pentagon the camp was really a complex of four camps, eight miles from Jalalabad. Karzai wrote that the four camps were: The CIA provided intelligence, pinpointing Osama bin Laden's presence, that enabled

Northern Alliance The Northern Alliance, officially known as the United Islamic National Front for the Salvation of Afghanistan ( prs, جبهه متحد اسلامی ملی برای نجات افغانستان ''Jabha-yi Muttahid-i Islāmi-yi Millī barāyi Nijāt ...

allies to bombard him in at the Darunta camp in 1999.Flawed Ally Was Hunt's Best Hope: Afghan Guerrilla, U.S. Shared Enemy
''

The Washington Post ''The Washington Post'' (also known as the ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'') is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C. It is the most widely circulated newspaper within the Washington metropolitan area and has a large n ...

'', February 23, 2004 The documents from some Guantanamo captives, such as Abbas Habid Rumi Al Naely, state that the Khalden training camp was also located in

.Summary of Evidence memo (.pdf)
prepared for Abbas Habid Rumi Al Naely's ''

Combatant Status Review Tribunal The Combatant Status Review Tribunals (CSRT) were a set of tribunals for confirming whether detainees held by the United States at the Guantanamo Bay detention camp had been correctly designated as "enemy combatants". The CSRTs were esta ...

'' - October 25, 2004 - page 65

Administration

Some sources claim the director of the camp was Midhat Mursi.WANTED: Midhat Mursi al-Sayid 'Umar - Up to $5 Million Reward
. ''

Rewards for Justice The Rewards for Justice Program (RFJ) is the counterterrorism and counterintelligence platform administered by the U.S. Department of State's Diplomatic Security Service agency. The Rewards For Justice program is seeking information leading to the ...

Dispute over whether Darunta was an al Qaeda camp

During his Administrative Review Board Abdul Bin Mohammed Bin Abess Ourgy acknowledged attending the Darunta camp, but he disputed that it was affiliated with al-Qaeda. Summarized transcripts (.pdf) from Abdul Bin Mohammed Bin Abess Ourgy's ''

'' - pages 34-42

Factors for and against the continued detention (.pdf) Factor, a Latin word meaning "who/which acts", may refer to: Commerce * Factor (agent), a person who acts for, notably a mercantile and colonial agent * Factor (Scotland), a person or firm managing a Scottish estate * Factors of production, s ...

of Abdul Bin Mohammed Bin Abess Ourgy '' Administrative Review Board'', May 2, 2005 - page 48 He asserted that the Derunta camp was a non-al Qaeda camp, that dated back to the Soviet occupation of Afghanistan, that it was originally run by the Hezbi Islami, and that after his attendance there the Derunta camp was one of the many non-al Qaeda camps that the Taliban shut down at al Qaeda's request. Other Guantanamo captives have reported that the similarly well-known Khalden training camp was not an al-Qaeda camp, and was shut down in 2000, at Osama bin Laden's request.

Alleged attendees

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Darunta Training Camp History of Nangarhar Province Al-Qaeda facilities