Following President Obama's order to close Guantanamo Bay prison within a year, the US is looking for responsible ways to relocate prisoners. Since one suggested location — Alcatraz — won't do, US lawmakers might consider "jihad rehab."
CNN reports that a Saudi rehab program, which uses religious teachers to re-educate Islamic radicals, could solve the US's dilemma of closing the prison while also keeping Americans safe. Saudi officials say that of the 218 participants that were arrested for engaging in terrorist activities only nine have been rearrested. That's less than .05 percent, and much better than the 11 percent re-engagement rate for prisoners released from Guantanamo. The program tries to neutralize dangerous ideology, explaining that killing goes against Muslim teachings, and also helps prisoners lead a normal life once they leave. One participant described his life before the program: "They told me Americans kill Muslims in Iraq and Afghanistan. . . and they brainwash me. . . They said it's the honorable thing to do to go fight Americans."
Since keeping detainees at Guantanamo Bay with limited rights could have increased anti-American sentiment among many prisoners, a more enlightened approach might serve everyone's interests.
Nicole Farhi
Ludd
Azzaro
I think it's a smart idea, but it would be foolish to underestimate these prisoners, too, and trust that statistic. Even if they weren't radicalized when they were placed in Guantanamo, they probably don't have the highest regard for the United States now. Let's just hope this rehabilitation takes place in legitimate prisons, not some shady facility like Gitmo...
1Who pays for this? We do?
Shouldnt we share some of the burden with their home countries since fewer deaths in their countries benefit them as well?
2My guess haus... we pay for.
3If folks are worried about paying for this kind of military/anti-terror intiatives I'm with you. I've been worried about the fact that we are solely footing the bill in Iraq for sometime.
4Since it's a Saudi program and the Saudis don't have the greatest track record on human rights, we might want to thoroughly examine this program before signing up for anything - we've got enough international law issues going on now.
5Of course first we might want to actually find out who we're holding since the Bush Administration apparently has left shoddy records on the detainees.
i'm sure the bush admin filed them away with the other secret documents and of course, the Book of Secrets.
6no haus karl rove probably ate the records.
7"Of course first we might want to actually find out who we're holding"
Yes, and how many actually need to go to rehab.
8We just had a news article on here that talked about the number 2 guy in the Yemen Al-Qaeda was released from Gitmo to a rehabilitation program in Saudi Arabia. Why would we think such a program would be sucessful when we have proof that it is not working?
9This is the most ridiculous thing I've heard
10Haus, if only they had even been that careful:
(Washingtonpost.com) "...information on individual prisoners is "scattered throughout the executive branch," a senior administration official said...a Cabinet-level panel named to review each case separately will have to spend its initial weeks and perhaps months scouring the corners of the federal government in search of relevant material.
Several former Bush administration officials agreed that the files are incomplete and that no single government entity was charged with pulling together all the facts and the range of options for each prisoner. They said that the CIA and other intelligence agencies were reluctant to share information, and that the Bush administration's focus on detention and interrogation made preparation of viable prosecutions a far lower priority."
We should figure out who we've got and what they might had done before we go paying the Saudis for rehab.
11"We should figure out who we've got and what they might had done before we go paying the Saudis for rehab."
12.
I agree with you *stephley*
Umm letting the Saudis do it? NO THANK YOU! I'm not trusting corrupt royals who benefit from our downfall to help us.
Looking into a form of rehabilitation program run and operated by us - then yes I can support that. A lot of these terrorists are poor uneducated people brainwashed into thinking they are doing the right thing, while someone else is sitting cozy and rich issuing sacrifices others must make - so this may be a great way to counter that.
13I won't sign on and say rehab and set them free because I'm not so sure that will work, but I do know it is worth trying along side other methods.
Ah this parallels an excellent book I'm reading called (A Magnificent Mind At Any Age) by Dr. Amen of the Amen clinic. A brain scan specialist. You should read the documented stories of rehabilitation by this clinic they're amazing.
As for rehabbing these prisoners it's simply of matter of replacing one ideology with another and apparently the Saudi program has had great success.
14Doesn't this smack of a "reeducation" camp? I would be worried about what goes on there.
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