MANAMA, 29 September 2006 — US lawyers representing three remaining Bahraini Gitmo detainees called on the Bahraini government yesterday to makes efforts similar to those made by Saudi Arabia and Kuwaiti to secure the release of their nationals.
The call came a day after the US House of Representatives on Wednesday approved the controversial “detainees trial bill” that has been criticized by human rights groups.
Joshua Colangelo-Bryan, who is representing the three remaining Bahraini detainees still held at Cuba’s Guantanamo Bay detention center, made the call in a letter sent to the vice president of the locally dissolved Bahrain Center for Human Rights (BCHR), Nabeel Rajab.
“There have been reports recently regarding the release of Kuwaiti and Saudi detainees,” Colangelo-Bryan said in his letter. “When I hear such reports and think about the long legal battle ahead, I can only hope that the government of Bahrain takes action like the governments of Kuwait and Saudi Arabia. Right now, that is the only chance for Jumah, Isa and Salah.”
He added that the Bahraini government should take steps before the new law is approved by the Senate and the US president.
