GUANTÁNAMO BAY NAVAL BASE, CUBA (BNO NEWS) -- A Yemeni man whose release had been overturned last year was found dead in his cell at the Guantánamo Bay detention facility in Cuba last week, the U.S. military said on Tuesday. The man had spent nearly eleven years in custody.

Adnan Farhan Abdul Latif, 32, was found unconscious and unresponsive in his cell on Saturday afternoon by Joint Task Force-Guantanamo guards who were conducting routine checks. The guards performed first aid and summoned medical personnel to the scene, which rushed Latif to Naval Hospital Guantanamo where he was later pronounced dead.

"Following the detainee's death, an autopsy was conducted by a medical examination team from the office of the Armed Forces Medical Examiner to determine the cause of death," a spokesperson for U.S. Southern Command said in a statement. "Autopsy results and cause of death determinations take time, and therefore are not available for release."

Military authorities said Latif's remains are being treated with respect for Islamic culture and traditions. "Following the autopsy, a Muslim military chaplain, the Joint Task Force Guantanamo Cultural Advisor, and Islamic volunteers from the staff were on hand to ensure the appropriate handling of the body," the statement added.

The Naval Criminal Investigative Service is investigating the cause and manner surrounding the death.

Latif was captured by Pakistani security forces along the border with Afghanistan in December 2001, just three months after the attacks of September 11 in the United States. He was turned over to the United States and accused of being a member of al-Qaeda, but there are conflicting reports about his story.

According to a classified assessment file made public by WikiLeaks, the U.S. military believed Latif was an al-Qaeda fighter in the Tora Bora region of eastern Afghanistan. The file claims Latif acknowledged receiving weapons training from the Taliban and fighting in support of the Taliban on the front lines.

The assessment file further claimed Latif acknowledged having received training at the al-Qaeda al-Faruq training camp and participated in hostilities against U.S. and coalition forces. He apparently also acknowledged recruitment from a senior al-Qaeda facilitator, using an al-Qaeda cover story, and expressed continued support for extremism. He is said to have also been listed on an al-Qaeda affiliated document.

But during later interviews, Latif claimed he had traveled to Afghanistan for the purpose of rebuilding an Islamic center or to receive medical treatment for severe head injuries he sustained in a car accident in 1994. But a visual inspection found no evidence of scars or defects, and his account of the accident was different in separate interviews.

Nonetheless, a federal trial judge in the U.S. District Court in Washington in 2010 described the military's intelligence report as unreliable and granted Latif's habeas corpus petition, pointing out that other detainees did not know him and that he had presented a plausible alternative story.

But a three-judge panel at the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit overruled that decision last year, citing inconsistencies in Latif's account and adding that the military report was entitled to a "presumption of regularity." The U.S. Supreme Court in June refused to hear an appeal from Latif.

The Yemeni man was one of the first inmates at the controversial detention facility in Cuba, where eight other inmates have died by either suicide or of natural causes. Latif is reported to have attempted suicide several times during his nearly 11-year-long stay at the facility, which now has a population of 167.

(Copyright 2012 by BNO News B.V. All rights reserved. Info: sales@bnonews.com.)

KABUL, AFGHANISTAN (BNO NEWS) -- Insurgents attacked coalition service members in eastern Afghanistan on Thursday, killing one of them, the NATO-led International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) said on early Friday. It raises the number of coalition troops killed in Afghanistan so far this year to 327.

ISAF said one of its service members was killed as a result of an insurgent attack in Afghanistan's east, which is one of the most volatile regions in the war-torn country. But because the multinational force defers the release of specific details to national authorities, no other details about the incident were immediately available, including the exact location.

The nationality of the service member involved was also not immediately disclosed by ISAF, again per its policy. "It is ISAF policy to defer casualty identification procedures to the relevant national authorities," ISAF said in a brief statement, giving no specific details. The alliance does also not report injuries.

The death on Thursday raises the number of coalition troops killed in Afghanistan so far this year to 327, according to unofficial figures. A total of 566 ISAF troops were killed in Afghanistan in 2011, down from 711 in 2010. A majority of the fallen troops were American and were killed in the country's south, which is plagued by IED attacks on troops and civilians.

There are currently more than 112,500 ISAF troops in Afghanistan, including some 74,400 U.S. troops and 9,500 British soldiers. U.S. President Barack Obama previously ordered a drawdown of 23,000 U.S. troops by the end of this summer, and 15,000 of them have already left in recent weeks. Foreign combat troops are due to leave Afghanistan by the end of 2014.

(Copyright 2012 by BNO News B.V. All rights reserved. Info: sales@bnonews.com.)

KABUL, AFGHANISTAN (BNO NEWS) -- Afghan and coalition forces on Sunday arrested a Taliban commander who allegedly coordinated an attack against a coalition helicopter in eastern Afghanistan, killing two American soldiers, the NATO-led International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) said on Monday.

The commander was taken into custody by a joint Afghan and coalition security force in eastern Afghanistan. ISAF said the commander and his insurgent cell are believed to have coordinated an attack against a coalition helicopter in eastern Afghanistan earlier this month, causing it to crash and killing both service members on board.

"The security force also detained one suspected insurgent and seized improvised explosive device components and Taliban-associated materials during this operation," ISAF said, adding that no civilians were harmed during Sunday's operation. It did not say where in eastern Afghanistan the operation took place.

Earlier this month, Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid claimed responsibility for the crash, which occurred in Logar province on September 5 and involved an OH-58 Kiowa helicopter. He said the crash set off a heavy firefight between coalition troops and Taliban insurgents, resulting in the deaths of at least two Taliban insurgents.

The two victims killed in the crash were previously identified as 31-year-old Chief Warrant Officer 2 Jose L. Montenegro Jr., of Houston, Texas, and 28-year-old Chief Warrant Officer 2 Thalia S. Ramirez, of San Antonio, Texas. They were both assigned to the 1st Squadron, 17th Cavalry Regiment, 82nd Combat Aviation Brigade, 82nd Airborne Division at Fort Bragg in North Carolina.

(Copyright 2012 by BNO News B.V. All rights reserved. Info: sales@bnonews.com.)

KHOST CITY, AFGHANISTAN (BNO NEWS) -- At least fourteen people were killed on Monday and nearly 60 others were injured when a suicide bomber riding a motorcycle detonated his explosives near a coalition convoy in eastern Afghanistan. The Taliban claimed responsibility.

The attack happened at around 8:40 a.m. local time when the suicide bomber blew himself up near a convoy belonging to the NATO-led International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) in Chowk Mujahid square, which is located near the provincial governor's office in Khost City, the capital of the province which carries the same name.

A spokesperson for the Afghan Interior Ministry said eleven Afghans, including four members of the Afghan National Police, were killed while 57 others were injured. The wounded, among them three Afghan police officers, were rushed to a local hospital where several remained in a serious condition.

ISAF confirmed three coalition service members were also killed, raising the overall death toll to at least fourteen. "Our thoughts and prayers are with the families and loved ones of those killed or injured in this terrible attack," ISAF spokesman Brigadier General John Madower said.

Because the multinational force defers the release of specific details to national authorities, the nationalities of the service members who were killed were not immediately known. "It is ISAF policy to defer casualty identification procedures to the relevant national authorities," ISAF said in a brief statement, giving no specific details. The alliance also declines to confirm possible injuries among coalition service members, again per its policy.

Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid claimed responsibility for the deadly attack on Monday and described the suicide bomber as a "heroic" Muslim fighter. He said the attack was carried out by a Taliban fighter identified as Muhammad Shoaib, an apparent resident of Kunduz province. The claim could not be independently verified.

The U.S. Embassy in Kabul strongly condemned the suicide bombing and expressed its condolences. "This tragic attack further illustrates that the insurgents have no respect for the safety and security of the Afghan people," an embassy spokesperson said. "The United States mourns the loss of life in Khost and our sympathies extend to all the victims and their families. We remain an unwavering partner of the Afghan people in the fight against international terrorism."

The deaths on Monday raise the number of coalition troops killed in Afghanistan so far this year to 347, according to unofficial figures. A total of 566 ISAF troops were killed in Afghanistan in 2011, down from 711 in 2010. A majority of the fallen troops were American and were killed in the country's south, which is plagued by IED attacks on troops and civilians.

There are currently more than 112,500 ISAF troops in Afghanistan, including some 74,400 U.S. troops and 9,500 British soldiers. U.S. President Barack Obama previously ordered a drawdown of 23,000 U.S. troops by the end of this summer, and 15,000 of them have already left in recent weeks. Foreign combat troops are due to leave Afghanistan by the end of 2014.

(Copyright 2012 by BNO News B.V. All rights reserved. Info: sales@bnonews.com.)

KABUL, AFGHANISTAN (BNO NEWS) -- At least fourteen Afghans have been executed by hanging so far this week, and two more are due to be executed soon, officials said on Wednesday, ending a four-year virtual moratorium on the use of the death penalty which was common during the rule of the Taliban regime.

Eight men were executed on Tuesday and six more were hanged on Wednesday after Afghan President Hamid Karzai signed off on their death warrants. He has also signed the death warrants of two other prisoners who are expected to be hanged at an undisclosed location within the next few days.

It was not immediately clear what prompted the sudden surge of executions, which marks the end of a four year period during which only two people were executed. Executions in Afghanistan have been infrequent since the fall of the Taliban regime in 2001, but some 200 prisoners are believed to be on death row.

"The Afghan government's near total moratorium on the death penalty in recent years was a major departure from Taliban rule," said Brad Adams, Asia director at Human Rights Watch. "The eight hangings in a single day are a terrible step backwards for Afghanistan. President Hamid Karzai should stop future executions and commit to a formal moratorium."

Human Rights Watch said the Afghan legal system routinely fails to meet international fair trial standards, making Afghanistan's use of the death penalty especially troubling. The men who were executed this week were said to have been convicted of murder, rape, sexual assault, kidnapping, and robbery.

Prior to Tuesday, the last executions took place in June 2011 when two men were hanged after being convicted of participating in an attack on a bank in eastern Afghanistan that resulted in the deaths of 38 people. Several people were executed in 2008, fifteen people were executed by firing squad at a prison in Kabul in 2007, and one execution took place in 2004.

Other human rights organizations and governments also condemned the spate of executions, which is likely to please many Afghans who often complain that the death penalty is necessary to serve as a deterrent against serious crime. "The death penalty should never be used to achieve political gain or popularity," said Polly Truscott, Asia-Pacific Deputy Director at Amnesty International.

Truscott added: "President Karzai would earn much higher credibility if he made greater effort to ensure the rule of law in Afghanistan where detainees are frequently tortured, the judiciary has little independence and serious human rights violations and crimes often go unpunished."

The European Union Delegation to Afghanistan, in a statement also supported by the governments of Norway and Switzerland, expressed its "serious concern" over the executions. "The European Union is opposed to the use of capital punishment in all cases and under any circumstances," the delegation said in its statement.

(Copyright 2012 by BNO News B.V. All rights reserved. Info: sales@bnonews.com.)