Below was culled from All Africa. We have terrorists now pointing fingers
at others as terrorists. This is why the war on terrorism is failing. Why
is the US government going around cuddling all these terrorists/dictators as
part of their army in the fight against terrorism. And they wonder why the
peoples that live under these dictators/terrorists have anti-American policy
feelings. This cuddling of this criminal enterprise is telling Gambians
that the US government is not interested that Jammeh murdered our kids and
nothing came of it; that the murder of his Finance Minister, koro Ceesay, is
not their interest; They are not interested that Jammeh and Baba Jobe are
culprits that participated in the killings and lootings in Sierra Leone and
Liberia; They are not interested that our people are starving and our
economy has bottomed out.
If the US government wants to really fight terrorism, they ought to start
with these terrorists/dictators, otherwise, they are just wasting their
time. We all know that Jammeh will lie about anybody that has middle
eastern background being a terrorist. These dictators know that all the US
is interested in is to be pointed to this and that one as terrorists and all
are game. Their (dictator/terrorists) motive is purely financial and for
themselves only. Gambians are dying of hunger and want and the US
Government is running after a scam. The US government for the past forty
years had an appetite for favoring a policy of dealing with dictators in
Africa and the so-called Third World, and it has not worked to their favor.
They call for democracy, but look at who they cuddle all over the place -
The Jammeh types. You name the worst tyrants/terrorists in Africa and they
are or where the US point persons in that continent. This must change. In
the midst of the misery of the people, the US cannot and should not come to
Gambians to legitimize this brutal dictatorship in the name of fighting
terrorism. Gambians are not stupid. We know that Jammeh is running a scam
when he committed to 'Article 98'. Any democratic minded person know that a
war criminal is a war criminal and a war criminal, regardless of national
origin. Why should US war criminals be treated any different. And they
wonder why the Serbs refused to surrender their two highest war criminals.
So, in short, the US cannot use terrorists to bring them terrorists, it's
not going to happen. If the US wants to see meaningful results in the fight
against terrorism, they need to stop legitimizing terrorists like Jammeh.
It is the Gambian people that can help you fight terrorism if there are any
in the Gambia, but you have to help them fight their own terror first, Yaya
Jammeh. Please read on.
Al-Qaeda Suspects Arrested in the Gambia
The Independent (Banjul)
December 23, 2002
Posted to the web December 23, 2002
Banjul
Four Arabs of Middle Eastern origin suspected of close links with Osama Bin
Ladin's al Qaeda network were arrested last month and held incommunicado by
the National Intelligence Agency.
Bisher Al-Rawi an Iraqi national and Jamil El Banna a Jordanian and another
man described as a business associate were arrested on arrival at the Banjul
International Airport on November 8 and spent almost a month in
incommunicado detention. A fourth man, Bisher Al-Rawi's brother, Wahab
Al-Rawi, who had arrived in The Gambia some days earlier, and who had gone
to the airport to meet them, was also arrested. They were reportedly
initially told that there was a problem with their visa applications but
were subsequently questioned on their alleged links to 'terrorist groups'.
The four men, released on December 5 and based in the UK, had reportedly
travelled to The Gambia in connection with a peanut processing company set
up by Wahab Al-Rawi.
After an initially brief period of questioning at the headquarters of the
National Intelligence Agency on the purpose of their visit, questioning was
then allegedly taken over by US investigators whose presence here was until
recently unknown. The men were reported to have been held in several houses
including the Tallinding residence of former NIA boss Kebba Ceesay. At least
one of them was reportedly threatened by US investigators while another of
the suspects may have been injured during his detention.
Wahab Al-Rawi and the third business associate, both of whom have acquired
British nationality, were released without charge on or around 5 December
and have since left The Gambia.
Before the Arabs left for the United Kingdom two weeks ago, Amnesty
International had appealed to The Gambia government, saying they were
seriously concerned for the safety of Bisher Al-Rawi and Jamil El Banna.
Jamil El Banna is believed to be a diabetic and so Amnesty International
were concerned that he may have not have had access to medication or a
doctor as required.
In a December 11 written appeal (AI Index: AFR 27/006/2002) (UA 359/02) to
President Jammeh and copied to US Ambassador, Jackson McDonald, NIA's
Director General, Abdoulie Kujabi, Foreign Affairs Minister, Baboucarr
Blaise Jagne, Attorney General, Joseph Joof and other diplomatic
representatives, Amnesty International appealed to the Gambian leader to
guarantee that the four men were protected from all forms of ill-treatment
and intimidation by both Gambian and US investigators, and that any
allegations of ill-treatment and intimidation be fairly investigated;
Amnesty International had also requested for clarification over the reasons
behind the arrest and prolonged detention. They had also demanded that
should the detention of the four be prolonged, the al-Qaeda suspects should
be given immediate access to medical care, legal counsel and human rights
groups. The human rights concern, which has a chapter in The Gambia also
demanded that the four be released if they had not been promptly charged
with a recognizably criminal offence for which there is substantiating
evidence.
Since 11 September 2001, Amnesty International have expressed concern on
numerous occasions at the arbitrary arrest and unlawful detention of people
suspected of links, often arbitrarily on the basis of nationality or
religion, with al-Qaeda.
Prior to the arrests The Gambia had had no known links to 'terrorist' groups
aligned to al Qaeda. By the time of the arrests The Gambia had not
introduced specific anti-terrorism legislation in the wake of September 11
although since Friday, the National Assembly had ratified bills opposed to
terrorism. These anti-terrorism clampdowns and the latest legislation that
followed them indicate The Gambia government's commitment to the crusade
against terror. Out of twelve UN Conventions on terrorism, it has signed
ten.
Since October The Gambia has developed close ties with the United States
after it signed an impunity agreement with that country. Such an agreement
categorised as 'Article 98' deals, commits The Gambia not to surrender US
citizens accused of genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes to the
International Criminal Court.
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