Tag Archives: Gitmo

A painting shows U.S. and Cuban flags flying outside of the Guantanamo Bay Lighthouse Museum.

NAVAL BASE GUANTANAMO BAY, Cuba — Normalization of relations between the U.S. and Cuba will not immediately impact the American naval base at Guantanamo, officials said this week.

In other words, for now, it’s business as usual.

Cuban flags were hoisted Monday at the Cuban embassy and at the State Department in Washington, marking the end of over 50 years of ruptured diplomatic relations going back to 1961, when those relations were abruptly severed.

But at the U.S. Navy base in Guantanamo Bay — on the far opposite end of Cuba from where the U.S. embassy in Havana has re-opened for full diplomatic business — it was as if nothing unusual had happened.

“There’s no impact on the base at this point. We’re continuing to execute our mission here,” said Kelly Wirfel, public affairs officer for the base, the U.S. Navy’s oldest overseas outpost.

“Those discussions for the normalization of relations are all at a higher level than what is happening here in Guantanamo Bay,” Wirfel said.

Those sentiments were echoed by Capt. Christopher Scholl, director of public affairs for the Joint Task Force in Guantanamo Bay, which operates independently of the naval base.

“Nothing is changed for us,” Scholl said.

Havana has repeatedly called for the return of the Guantanamo base, leased to the U.S. in 1903.

In a 1934 treaty reaffirming the lease, Cuba granted trade partners free access through the bay and added a requirement that the termination of the lease requires the consent of the U.S. and Cuban governments, or the abandonment of the base by the U.S.

When diplomatic relations were officially restored Monday, Cuban foreign minister Bruno Rodriguez repeated the country’s request for the “return of the illegally occupied territory of Guantanamo, full respect for Cuban sovereignty and compensation of our people” in order to move the relationship forward.

But Secretary of State John Kerry, who will travel to Havana on Aug. 14 to raise the American flag over the U.S. Embassy, later said: “At this time, there is no discussion and intention on our part … to alter the existing lease treaty or other arrangements with respect to the naval station in Cuba.

“We understand Cuba has strong feelings about it,” Kerry went on. “I can’t tell you what the future will bring.”

Wirfel said the topic of returning the base to Cuba had not been broached in any way with the base commander, Capt. David Culpepper.

These days, the U.S. Navy holds monthly fence-line meetings with the Cuban frontier brigade. The sessions are held in converted Marine barracks near the 17.4 mile-long security fence. Culpepper conducts the administrative meetings to discuss upcoming scheduled drills with the Cuban representatives.

In June, the Navy conducted a bilateral exercise with Cuban medical responders and emergency services, practicing for the possibility of a fire or accident along the fence line. During these annual exercises, medical responders are allowed to cross over the fence lines, but can’t enter into town.

Wirfel said the base also is preparing to participate next year in Integrated Advance, an exercise to prepare for a “mass migration event.”

In the 1990s, the base conducted Operation Sea Signal, providing humanitarian assistance to 50,000 Cuban and Haitian migrants who flocked to Guantanamo following political and social upheaval in their countries.

“Certainly the naval station … plays a huge role in a lot of things that happen in the Caribbean,” Wirfel said.

While the Navy’s mission will remain unchanged for now, unexpected shifts in daily life soon may ripple across the base.

Foreign contract workers on the base today are mainly Filipinos and Jamaicans. Before relations were cut off with Cuba, those jobs were filled by Cuban workers. If relations continue to improve, the base’s contractor workforce may see more Cubans.

Another change: Now, children born on the base are not immediately considered U.S. citizens, and must apply for a consular birth report abroad through the U.S. Embassy in Jamaica. When the U.S. Embassy in Havana is fully operational, American diplomats there may take over this role.

While the relationship between the U.S. and Cuba thaws, at least in terms of civilian travel to Havana, the limbo for sailors stationed at Guantanamo Bay — who are restricted to the 45-square-mile base and are prohibited from traveling into Cuba itself — remains.

“I’ve never, of course, been into Cuba,” Wirfel said. “But I’ve heard it’s beautiful.”

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NAVAL BASE GUANTANAMO BAY, CUBA — Terrorist suspect Abd al Hadi al-Iraqi said in court Wednesday that he has “a very disturbed relationship” with his military lawyers and does not want the Pentagon-assigned team to represent him at his pretrial hearing.

“Regrettably we’re in a little bit of a limbo,” the military judge, Navy Capt. J.K. Waits, said in declaring an indefinite recess.

Pretrial hearings for the alleged senior al-Qaida commander were scheduled to commence Monday, but were postponed because prosecutors introduced new evidence that showed a conflict of interest with one of the lawyers on Hadi’s defense team, Marine Lt. Col. Sean Gleason.

During the hearing, Hadi told Waits that he was fine with having Marine Lt. Col. Tom Jasper representing him.

Less than an hour later, things changed when Hadi objected to the makeup of his defense team after lengthy arguments regarding the possible conflict of interest.

Gleason, who was not present Wednesday, was reassigned in 2013 to represent another Guantanamo prisoner, Mustafa al Hawsawi, one of five 9/11 defendants.

The defense claimed that information provided by prosecutors shows that Gleason has some documents regarding 2007 conversations between Hadi and al Hawsawi at Guantanamo Bay that contained statements harmful to Hadi.

Jasper noted that Hadi never agreed to Gleason’s reassignment.

Speaking to the military judge in Arabic through an interpreter, Hadi, who was dressed in traditional white Muslim garb, said, “Gleason has lots of information concerning me, and I don’t know in the future whether he’ll use it for me or against me.”

The new evidence includes a 10-page document that was handed to defense lawyers Sunday. Jasper argued that having just two days to analyze and review the information was not enough time, especially considering that the prosecution has had those details in hand for a number of years.

In April 2012, the prosecution turned over a list of 25 people who could present possible conflicts of interest in Hadi’s trial. The defense claims Hawsawi was never on the list.

“The problem is that we are flying by the seat of our pants trying to figure out our ethical obligation regarding ethical representation,” Jasper, Hadi’s lead defense attorney, told Waits.

In September, Jasper replaced the lawyer who represented Hadi during his 2014 arraignment, Army Reserve Col. Chris Callen, who returned to civilian life. Air Force Maj. Ben Stirk, a deputy defense counsel, has been the only defense lawyer to appear at all five of Hadi’s hearings.

Waits directed the defense and prosecution to arrange a meeting with Gleason. Navy Lt. Cmdr. Vaughn Spencer told Waits that Gleason is an active-duty Marine and could be brought to Guantanamo “as quickly as you direct us.”

The commissions will remain on hold until those meetings take place.

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Flags fly at half mast at Joint Task Force Guantanamo’s Camp Justice, July 22, 2015 (Taylor Hall/Medill NSJI)

GUANTANAMO BAY NAVY BASE, CUBA — Military court hearings ground to an indefinite halt Wednesday after an Iraqi prisoner accused of war crimes petitioned for a new lawyer, citing conflict of interest issues.

At the start of Wednesday’s proceedings, the military judge, Navy Capt. J.K. Waits asked Abd al Hadi al Iraqi, accused of leading violent attacks as a senior al-Qaida commander in 2003, whether he wanted to be represented by his current defense counsel, Marine Lt. Col. Tom Jasper and Air Force Maj. Ben Stirk. Hadi, dressed in traditional white garb, responded: “Today, yes.”

But less than one hour later, the Iraqi prisoner had changed his tune.

“I don’t want to confer with Jasper or Stirk about this at least temporarily until I have an option for an independent counsel. I don’t want them to represent me at this time,” al Hadi said through his translator.

The conflict of interest issue and representation for Hadi emerged Sunday, when the lead government prosecutor, Army Lt. Col. David Long, turned over evidence of jailhouse conversations in 2007 between Hadi and a Sept. 11 defendant also imprisoned at Guantanamo, Mustafa al Hawsawi. The prosecution apparently intended to include information from the conversation between Hadi and Hawsawi to prove Hadi was an “unprivileged enemy belligerent.”

But Hawsawi and Hadi, it turns out, have a defense lawyer in common — Marine Lt. Col. Sean Gleason.

Jasper, the lead military defense attorney, said Gleason, previously detailed to Hadi’s defense team, was not properly released by Hadi from his case.

“With regard to Gleason, it was only today I realized he’s still working in my case. And that was based on what I heard from Jasper today. Before that I had the wrong information,” Hadi said in court. “I’ve been working with Jasper based on the wrong information.”

Jasper said this posed critical conflict of interest issues that could complicate future proceedings for the entire defense team.

“We’re flying by the seat of our pants trying to figure out our ethical obligations regarding the ethical representation of Hadi,” Jasper said.

Hadi has asked for a civilian lawyer, but is not automatically entitled to one under the rules for military commissions because his is not a capital case.
In the hearing Wednesday, Hadi spoke directly to the military judge, Waits, expressing concerns over information shared with Gleason and fair representation by current defense counsel.

“I understand the privileged relationship between attorney and client. But there’s an important issue. Attorney Gleason has lots of information concerning me. I don’t know if he’s gong to use this information in the future, for me or against me,” Hadi said.

“Right now I have a very disturbed relationship with my attorneys. I can give you many examples,” he added.

One of the military prosecutors, Navy Lt. Col. Vaughn Spencer, challenged the extent of the conflict around the conversations, which took place before either Hadi or Hawsawi had legal representation or faced any charges. But Waits ruled to delay the hearings until Hadi had a chance to speak with Gleason about conflict issues that could adversely affect his case.

“The issue of a potential conflict with Gleason needs to be resolved,” Waits said. “The commission directs Jasper to contact Gleason to consult with Hadi. If you want independent counsel, that’s your prerogative.”

Waits directed the government prosecutors to keep the courts informed on the status of meetings between Gleason with Hadi and Hawsawi.

Hadi has temporarily dismissed Jasper and Stirk, and Waits recessed the military hearings indefinitely until Gleason, who was not present at Guantanamo this week, can be consulted.

Prosecutor Navy Lt. Col. Vaughn Spencer told the military judge Gleason is an active duty Marine and could be contacted “as quickly as you direct us.”

Until then, military court proceedings in Guantanamo will remain on hold.

“Regrettably, we’re in a little bit of a limbo,” Waits said.

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