Guantanamo 2: Extend stay by 10 years – Irbard Ibrahim

The government of Ghana should consider extending the stay of the two ex-inmates of Guantanamo Bay in Ghana by 10 years after the expiration of the initial two years agreement, security consultant, Irbard Ibrahim has suggested.

“From the look of things, they are comfortable in Ghana, so, we can extend their stay by 10 more years. Where else can they go? The stigma that will characterise their stay in an Arab country will be bad,” the security analyst told ClassFMonline.com on Thursday, 11 January.

He continued: “Where they came from is still at war and there is a potential for someone who is exposed to war to take up arms, so, it will be in the interest of global security that Ghana will renew their stay in Ghana. When they go back to Yemen and find themselves in militancy, they would have known Ghana, and, perhaps, they could be sent here at any point in time."

Mr Ibrahim feels it will be better for the two “to stay here, marry here and find some job here in Ghana”, adding that such an action will further “consolidate the bilateral ties between Ghana and the US”.

He further explained that the two are not being held as captives but are free to go about their normal activities even though there is some level of surveillance on them.

Mr Ibrahim’s suggestion is in sharp contrast with the position of private legal practitioner and Vice-President of IMANI Ghana, Kofi Bentil, who has asked government to return the two ex-inmates.

Mr Bentil, in a Facebook post on Sunday, 7 January 2018, said the period for their stay is over, therefore, the government must update Ghanaians.

“Time to return the Gitmo 2. Their time is up. Please update us before we use the courts,” the post read.

In August last year, parliament ratified an agreement to allow Mahmud Umar Muhammad Bin Atef and Khalid Muhammad Salih Al-Dhuby, to stay in Ghana, following a Supreme Court order. The Court had earlier ruled that their stay in Ghana was unconstitutional without parliamentary backing.

In January 2016, the John Mahama-led government accepted the transfer of the two Yemeni ex-detainees from the US into the country for a period of two years.

The decision to host them created a controversy and public outcry among Ghanaians, with many expressing fear that the move would undermine Ghana’s internal security and expose the country to attacks from religious extremists.