US Government Offering $5M Reward for Al Qaeda Leader Freed from Gitmo

LTC Private RallyPoint Member — Tue, 23 Dec 2014 13:43:36 -0500

What are your thoughts on this?

The Obama administration is scrambling to track down an Al Qaeda terrorist released from Guantanamo Bay years ago, offering a $5 million reward for information on him and placing him on a global terrorist list.

Ibrahim al-Rubaysh was originally released in 2006 by the George W. Bush administration and put into a Saudi Arabian "rehabilitation" program. However, al-Rubaysh returned to the battlefield and now serves as a top leader with Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula -- one of the most dangerous Al Qaeda affiliates.

The case underscores the continued risks in transferring detainees from the controversial prison camp -- another four were released over the weekend to Afghanistan.

The Pentagon, though, insists that it continues to take precautions before releasing prisoners.

Lt. Col. Myles Caggins, Defense Department spokesman for detainee policy, said more than 90 percent of detainees transferred under the Obama administration "have resumed quiet lives in various countries."

Al-Rubaysh, he said, was held at Guantanamo from 2002 and transferred in 2006.

"Since 2009, the Defense Department and five government departments and agencies conduct thorough security and intelligence reviews prior to transferring Guantanamo detainees," Caggins said.

Recent alerts from the State Department revealed how al-Rubaysh has reestablished himself in militant circles since his release.

A briefing posting on the department's Rewards for Justice website offers up to $5 million for information that "brings justice" to the former detainee. It says he has served as a senior "sharia official" with AQAP since 2013 and as such, "provides the justification for attacks conducted by AQAP." He also is involved in planning attacks, the posting says.

A statement released last week by the department putting him on a list of "Specially Designated Global Terrorists" offered more details about his activities. The department said al-Rubaysh has made public statements, including this past August, "where he called on Muslims to wage war against the United States."

Conservative watchdog group Judicial Watch first reported on the reward offer for the former Gitmo inmate.

The group criticized the "laughable Saudi rehab program, which started under Bush and continued under Obama."

Judicial Watch wrote: "It turns out that al-Rubaysh is the poster child for the Saudi rehab's failures. He's a dangerous Al Qaeda operative based in Yemen and now, years after freeing him, the United States wants him captured."

Detainee transfers have continued at a steady clip, to countries all over the world, since the Bush administration. A total of 23 detainees have been released this year, and more of the 132 detainees left at Guantanamo are expected to be transferred in the coming months.

GOP lawmakers have raised security concerns, warning that some could return to the battlefield and endanger U.S. troops serving overseas. But the administration says the camp itself undermines national security and should still be shuttered.

http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2014/12/23/us-government-offering-5m-reward-for-al-qaeda-leader-freed-from-gitmo/

US government offering $5M reward for Al Qaeda leader freed from Gitmo

The Obama administration is scrambling to track down an Al Qaeda terrorist released from Guantanamo Bay years ago, offering a $5 million reward for information on him and placing him on a global terrorist list.

Response by CW5 Private RallyPoint Member made Dec 23 at 2014 1:54 PM

CW5 Private RallyPoint Member — Tue, 23 Dec 2014 13:54:03 -0500

I'm betting he won't be the last released GTMO detainee who re-joins the fight, LTC Private RallyPoint Member - despite the careful vetting that is done. "Resumed quiet lives," eh? Okay, but I'm not buying that at all.

Response by SPC(P) Jay Heenan made Dec 23 at 2014 4:39 PM

SPC(P) Jay Heenan — Tue, 23 Dec 2014 16:39:24 -0500

If we aren't going to capture them and try them for war crimes, why even capture them in the first place? Capture, release and then pay to get them back? Well, we will just cut another 100,000 troops to cover that cost...no worries.

Response by MAJ Private RallyPoint Member made Dec 23 at 2014 6:10 PM

MAJ Private RallyPoint Member — Tue, 23 Dec 2014 18:10:24 -0500

I suppose GPS tagging these guys before we release them is out of the question?

Response by LTC Paul Heinlein made Dec 23 at 2014 6:13 PM

LTC Paul Heinlein — Tue, 23 Dec 2014 18:13:26 -0500

LTC Private RallyPoint Member,

This does not surprise me in the least.

We are also involuntarily separating/ retiring Officers (MAJs/CPT) that 4-6 years ago we paid $30K to them to stay in the Army.

Sometimes the machine is to big to be efficient!

Response by TSgt Joshua Copeland made Dec 23 at 2014 7:46 PM

TSgt Joshua Copeland — Tue, 23 Dec 2014 19:46:47 -0500

/facepalm

Response by CPO Brian Fowler made Dec 23 at 2014 8:29 PM

CPO Brian Fowler — Tue, 23 Dec 2014 20:29:28 -0500

Maybe we should implant them with RFID and GPS chips... better yet, a chip that can cause a heart attack initiated by a cell phone.

Response by MAJ Private RallyPoint Member made Dec 24 at 2014 1:47 PM

MAJ Private RallyPoint Member — Wed, 24 Dec 2014 13:47:01 -0500

So he didn't get reformed? I'm surprised, I thought the administration totally reformed him at Gitmo, and he totally promissed to behave himself.

Here's an idea, if we spend all the time and effort to get these dick heads why not smoke them on the spot, or after we are done enhanced extracting info from them on their buddies we kill them then and feed them to pigs.

I'm not a finance guy but that would probably be a lot easier on the US tax payer.