Key Takeaways:
- The UK has paid a "substantial sum" to Abu Zubaydah, a Guantánamo Bay detainee, in an out-of-court settlement for its alleged complicity in his rendition and torture.
- Abu Zubaydah was subjected to "enhanced interrogation techniques" in secret prisons around the world, including waterboarding, beatings, and sensory deprivation.
- The UK’s intelligence services provided questions to the CIA to ask Abu Zubaydah while he was being tortured, according to his lawyers.
- The settlement provides a measure of redress and implicit recognition of Abu Zubaydah’s suffering, but the UK government has not admitted liability or apologized for its role in his torture.
- The case highlights the legal and moral risks involved in cooperating with the US or other allies that flout international norms.
Introduction to the Case
The UK government has settled out of court with Abu Zubaydah, a Guantánamo Bay detainee, by paying a "substantial sum" in compensation for its alleged complicity in his rendition and torture. Abu Zubaydah, whose full name is Zayn al-Abidin Muhammad Husayn, is a stateless Palestinian who was one of the first detainees in the US "war on terror" to be tortured. He was subjected to a range of "enhanced interrogation techniques" in secret prisons around the world, including waterboarding, beatings, and sensory deprivation. The UK’s intelligence services, MI5 and MI6, provided questions to the CIA to ask Abu Zubaydah while he was being tortured, according to his lawyers.
Background on Abu Zubaydah’s Detention
Abu Zubaydah was first seized in a sweep of suspected militants in Pakistan in March 2002. The US initially claimed he was a high-ranking member of al-Qaida, but has since dropped that claim, and now no longer alleges that he was even a member of the organization. He has been held in Guantánamo Bay without charge since 2006, becoming one of its "forever prisoners." Evidence of British complicity in his torture surfaced in two UK parliamentary reports in 2018, which revealed that MI5 and MI6 had fed questions to the CIA to ask Abu Zubaydah, in the knowledge that he was being tortured.
The Settlement and Its Implications
The amount of financial settlement was not disclosed as part of the agreement with Abu Zubaydah, but his legal team described it as "substantial." The settlement provides a measure of redress and implicit recognition of Abu Zubaydah’s suffering, but the UK government has not admitted liability or apologized for its role in his torture. According to Helen Duffy, Abu Zubaydah’s international counsel, "It is important, symbolically and practically, that UK pays for its role in our client’s torture." The settlement is seen as a significant development in the case, as it acknowledges the UK’s complicity in Abu Zubaydah’s torture and provides some measure of justice for his suffering.
The UK Supreme Court Ruling
The UK supreme court opened the way for Abu Zubaydah to bring a civil claim against the UK government in a ruling in December 2023, rejecting government claims that his treatment came under the jurisdiction of the countries in which he was held. The court said that Abu Zubaydah’s "involuntary presence in any of the six countries cannot constitute a meaningful connection with that country." The court also said that the alleged wrongs "were committed by UK intelligence services who were acting in their official capacity in the purported exercise of powers conferred under the law of England and Wales." This ruling is significant, as it establishes that the UK government can be held accountable for its actions, even if they take place outside of the UK.
Abu Zubaydah’s Treatment and the CIA’s Use of Torture
According to a US Senate investigation into the CIA’s use of torture and other inquiries into the use of torture, Abu Zubaydah was waterboarded 83 times in a single month, locked for more than 11 days in a coffin-sized box and left to lie in his own urine and faeces, stripped naked and beaten, suspended from hooks just above the floor, and kept awake for seven consecutive days and doused with cold water whenever he lost consciousness. These allegations are shocking and highlight the extreme nature of the torture that Abu Zubaydah was subjected to. In recent years, Abu Zubaydah has published a series of his own drawings depicting his treatment at black sites, which provide a powerful and personal account of his experiences.
Conclusion and Call to Action
The case of Abu Zubaydah highlights the legal and moral risks involved in cooperating with the US or other allies that flout international norms. As Helen Duffy noted, "This case is deeply relevant today, as states ride roughshod over international law and the world looks to other states to respond." The UK government’s failure to admit liability or apologize for its role in Abu Zubaydah’s torture is a concern, and his lawyers are calling on the government to acknowledge and apologize for its role in his torture, and actively seek his release, and the freedom of other prisoners still held without charge in Guantánamo Bay. The settlement provides a measure of justice for Abu Zubaydah, but it is only a first step towards accountability and closure for the victims of torture and their families.