Ayotte Calls for Common Sense Detainee Policy

Press Release

U.S. Senator Kelly Ayotte (R-NH) today expressed deep concern that a terrorist detainee released from Guantanamo Bay is now a top al Qaeda leader. In response to a question from Senator Ayotte during a Senate Armed Services Committee hearing, General James Mattis, the Commander of Central Command who is responsible for the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, testified that a former Guantanamo prisoner is now working as the Number 2 leader of al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP).

"It is completely unacceptable and deeply concerning that a released detainee is now a senior leader of al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula. With recent testimony from top military leaders confirming that 25 percent of former Guantanamo prisoners have rejoined the terrorist fight, it's clear that our detention policy is broken," said Ayotte. "We now have a situation in which a former Guantanamo detainee is serving as the number two leader in al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula, actively planning to kill American troops. That's disgraceful. The very least we can do for our servicemen and women is to not allow captured terrorists to get back into the fight, and I look forward to working in the Senate to establish a sensible detention policy."

General Mattis' testimony referred to the "Number Two person" in AQAP, who is Said al Shihri, the "Vice Emir" of AQAP. Referring to al Shihri, General Mattis said the former Guantanamo detainee is actively engaged in trying to harm Americans.

Ayotte, a Senate Armed Services Committee member, has questioned senior military officials about the activities of released terrorist detainees. Responding to inquiries from Ayotte last month, Defense Secretary Robert Gates and Acting Under Secretary of Defense for Intelligence Michael Vickers both indicated that approximately 25 percent of former prisoners have rejoined the terrorist fight. General Mattis reconfirmed that figure at today's Senate Armed Services hearing.

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