Guantanamo Bay Detainees infoPart4

UNCLASSIFIED   Another detainee, who has threatened guards and admits enjoying terrorizing Americans, studied at Texas A&M for 18 months and has acquaintances in the U.S.  He also studied English at the University of Texas in Austin.  Another detainee, who has been identified as an al Qaida weapons supplier, studied at Embry Riddle Aviation School in Arizona, obtaining a graduate degree in avionics management.   One detainee has a Masters degree in Aviation Management.  Another detainee has a Masters degree in Petroleum Engineering.   Insight into Future Leaders and Centers of Activity Guantanamo detainees provide a unique insight into the type of individuals likely to become participants, recruiters, and leaders for the Islamic extremist movements. Detainees possess an astonishing variety of skills, educational levels, levels of motivation and experience.  It is likely that many Guantanamo detainees would have risen to positions of prominence in the leadership ranks of al Qaida and its associated groups. Since the elimination of Afghanistan as a sanctuary for al Qaida, the organization has endured a transitional period and become a looser network of extremists. In many cases, it has had to rely upon regional or local extremist networks to carry out its missions. A detainee does not have to be a member of al Qaida to provide valuable intelligence.  The information provided by detained members of lesser-known extremist groups will prove to be valuable in the future as we continue to work to prevent the resurgence of groups like al Qaida and its supporters. GTMO as a Strategic Interrogation Center GTMO is currently the only DoD strategic interrogation center and will remain useful as long as the war on terrorism is underway and new enemy combatants are captured and sent there.  The lessons learned at GTMO have advanced both the operational art of intelligence, and the development of strategic interrogations doctrine.  Detainees Returning to the Fight We know of several former detainees from JTF-GTMO that have rejoined the fight against coalition forces.  We have been able to identify at least ten by name.  Press reporting indicates al Qaida-linked militants recently kidnapped two Chinese engineers and that former detainee Abdullah Mahsud, their reputed leader, ordered the kidnapping.  (Fox News report October 12, 2004, Islamabad the News October 20, 2004, Washington Post  October 13, 2004).  Mahsud, now reputed to be a militant leader, claimed to be an office clerk and driver for the Taliban from 1996 to 1998 or 1999.  He consistently denied having any affiliation with al Qaida.  He also claimed to have received no weapons or military training due to his handicap (an amputation resulting from when he stepped on a land mine 10 years ago).  He claimed that after September 11, 2001 he was forcibly conscripted by the Taliban military