ALKHOBAR, 26 September 2006 — After four years of living in a dog cage in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, Abdullah Al-Rashidan says all he wants to do now is get married. Rashidan is one of the Saudi men the United States believed was some kind of international terrorist mastermind. Despite its new lax rules allowing domestic spying, the rendering of suspects to third-party countries for “interviews” in secret prisons, and its global intelligence network, the US couldn’t manage to build a case against Rashidan and others like him that would hold water in a court of law. So, like others, Rashidan was extradited back to his native country. Saudi authorities have been processing these “returnees” to ensure that they aren’t wanted criminals. Some have undergone counseling and rehabilitation. Rashidan has been allowed to go home to be with his family for Ramadan. He told the Okaz daily in a report published yesterday that it ain’t easy being a Gitmo ex-con. Aside from his view that he’s “damaged goods” in the eyes of any potential bride, he says it has been difficult getting re-adjusted to a normal social routine.
