Andy Worthington

Last updated

Andy Worthington
Andy Worthington 2012-10-05 TobiasK 03.jpg
Worthington in 2012
OccupationJournalist, historian, film director
NationalityBritish
SubjectBritish social history, Stonehenge
the war on terror
Website
andyworthington.co.uk

Andy Worthington is a British historian, investigative journalist, and film director. [1] [2] [3] He has published three books, two on Stonehenge and one on the war on terror, been published in numerous publications and directed documentary films. Articles by Worthington have been published in The New York Times , The Guardian , The Huffington Post , [4] AlterNet , ZNet , the Future of Freedom Foundation and Amnesty International, and Qatar-based Al Jazeera. He has appeared on television with Iran-based Press TV [5] In 2008, he began writing articles for Cageprisoners, and became its Senior Researcher in June 2010. [6]

Contents

Writing and reporting

His first two books were: Stonehenge: Celebration & Subversion and The Battle of the Beanfield. [7] [8] The first book concerns modern celebrations at the ancient astronomical site, and the differing interpretations of modern celebrants. The second book concerns a large confrontation between police and new age celebrants travelling to Stonehenge on 1 June 1985.

Worthington's third book is The Guantanamo Files: The Stories of the 774 Detainees in America's Illegal Prison. Following its publication in October 2007, [9] Worthington has published articles supplementing the information in his book, to track new developments. Michelle Shephard, author of Guantanamo's Child , when summing up other books on Guantánamo, described his book as: "Perhaps the single most important book to cover the big picture of Guantánamo", even though he "has never even been to Guantánamo Bay." [10] Stephen Grey, writing in the New Statesman , called the book "...a powerful, essential and long-overdue piece of research". [11]

In 2008, he wrote the entry "Guantanamo Scandal" for Microsoft Encarta.[ citation needed ]

In 2009, Worthington and Polly Nash co-directed Outside the Law: Stories from Guantanamo, a 75-minute documentary about the Guantánamo detainees. [12] [13] The film focuses on the cases of United Kingdom citizen Moazzam Begg, and Omar Deghayes and Shaker Aamer, legal residents of the UK. In addition to interviews with Begg and Deghayes, there are interviews with lawyers Clive Stafford Smith and Tom Wilner, and Worthington himself.

In 2009, Worthington published what has been described as the most definitive annotated list of all Guantánamo detainees. [14] [15] In January 2010, he published the first annotated list of Bagram detainees. [16]

Worthington has made many radio and television appearances as a commentator on Guantánamo since the publication of his third book. [1] [17] [18]

On 16 June 2009, Worthington revealed new information on the death of Ibn al-Shaykh al-Libi a former US ghost prisoner who died in a Libyan jail. He described in particular the prisons in which al Libi was held, and the ways in which torture was used by his interrogators. [19] Worthington reported that former Guantánamo detainee, United Kingdom resident, and citizen of Libya Omar Deghayes was his link to a source within Libya who had spoken with Al Libi prior to his death. [19]

In 2010, Amnesty International was criticised for its partnership with Cageprisoners' Moazzam Begg by Gita Sahgal, its former Gender Unit head. Worthington defended Amnesty International and Begg, citing Islamophobia. He said, "I know from personal experience that Moazzam Begg is no extremist. We have met on numerous occasions, have had several long discussions, and have shared platforms together at many events." [20]

See also

Related Research Articles

Ibn al-Shaykh al-Libi was a Libyan national captured in Afghanistan in November 2001 after the fall of the Taliban; he was interrogated by American and Egyptian forces. The information he gave under torture to Egyptian authorities was cited by the George W. Bush Administration in the months preceding its 2003 invasion of Iraq as evidence of a connection between Saddam Hussein and al-Qaeda. That information was frequently repeated by members of the Bush Administration, although reports from both the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) and the Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA) strongly questioned its credibility, suggesting that al-Libi was "intentionally misleading" interrogators.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Moazzam Begg</span> British Pakistani formerly held in Guantanamo Bay

Moazzam Begg is a British Pakistani who was held in extrajudicial detention by the US government in the Bagram Theater Internment Facility and the Guantanamo Bay detainment camp, in Cuba, for nearly three years. Seized by Pakistani intelligence at his home in Pakistan in February 2002, he was transferred to the custody of US Army officers, who held him in the detention centre at Bagram, Afghanistan, before transferring him to Guantanamo Bay, where he was held until January 2005.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Abu Faraj al-Libbi</span> Libyan member of al-Qaeda

Abu Faraj al-Libi is an assumed name or nom de guerre of a Libyan alleged to be a senior member of the al-Qaeda terrorist organization. His real name is Mustafa Faraj Muhammad Muhammad Masud al-Jadid al-Uzaybi. He was arrested by Pakistan's Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) on May 2, 2005, in Mardan. Finding al-Libi was a joint effort of the Central Intelligence Agency's (CIA) Special Activities Division and Pakistan's Special Forces.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bagram torture and prisoner abuse</span> Early 2000s torture by American soldiers in Bagram, Afghanistan

In 2005, The New York Times obtained a 2,000-page United States Army investigatory report concerning the homicides of two unarmed civilian Afghan prisoners by U.S. military personnel in December 2002 at the Bagram Theater Internment Facility in Bagram, Afghanistan and general treatment of prisoners. The two prisoners, Habibullah and Dilawar, were repeatedly chained to the ceiling and beaten, resulting in their deaths. Military coroners ruled that both the prisoners' deaths were homicides. Autopsies revealed severe trauma to both prisoners' legs, describing the trauma as comparable to being run over by a bus. Seven soldiers were charged in 2005.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Omar Deghayes</span> Libyan citizen

Omar Amer Deghayes is a Libyan citizen who had legal residency status with surviving members of his family in the United Kingdom since childhood. He was arrested in Pakistan in 2002. He was held by the United States as an enemy combatant at Guantanamo Bay detention camp from 2002 until December 18, 2007. He was released without charges and returned to Britain, where he lives. His Guantanamo Internment Serial Number was 727. Deghayes says he was blinded permanently in one eye, after a guard at Guantanamo gouged his eyes with his fingers. Deghayes was never charged with any crime at Guantanamo.

Bisher Amin Khalil Al-Rawi is an Iraqi citizen, who became a resident of the United Kingdom in the 1980s. Arrested in Gambia on a business trip in November 2002, he was transferred to United States military custody and held until 30 March 2007, in extrajudicial detention in the United States Guantanamo Bay detention camp at its naval base in Cuba. His Guantanamo Internment Serial Number was 906. The Department of Defense reports that Al Rawi was born on 23 December 1960, in Baghdad, Iraq.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jamil el Banna</span> Palestinian-Jordanian held by the US 2002–07 (born 1952)

Jamil Abdul Latif el-Banna, born 28 May 1962, is a Jordanian of Palestinian origin, with refugee status in the United Kingdom, who had been living in north-west London. He was abducted in November 2002 by the CIA from The Gambia while on a business trip, and suffered extraordinary rendition to Bagram, Afghanistan, where he was held and interrogated by the CIA until March 2003. He was transferred to military custody at Guantanamo Bay detainment camp in March 2003, and held there until 19 December 2007.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hassan bin Attash</span> Saudi Guantanamo Bay detainee (born 1982 or 1985)

Hassan Muhammad Salih bin Attash is a citizen of Saudi Arabia, held by the United States in the Guantanamo Bay detention camp in Cuba. Joint Task Force Guantanamo counter-terrorism analysts estimate that bin Attash was born in 1985, in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.

Damien M. Corsetti was a soldier in the United States Army. As part of the Army's investigation into prisoner abuse at Bagram, Corsetti was charged with dereliction of duty, maltreatment, assault and performing an indecent act with another person. PFC Corsetti was later found not guilty of all charges. At the time Corsetti was a specialist in the 519th Military Intelligence Battalion, serving under Lieutenant Carolyn Wood.

Mosa Zi Zemmori is a Belgian citizen who was held in extrajudicial detention in the United States Guantanamo Bay detainment camps, in Cuba. His Guantanamo detainee ID number was 270. The Department of Defense reports that his date of birth is 3 July 1978, in Wilrijk, Belgium. He was repatriated to Belgium on 25 April 2005. When he was arrested he was characterized as a Moroccan, or a Belgian, from Morocco, although the DoD says he was born in Belgium.

Mohammed el Gharani is a citizen of Chad and native of Saudi Arabia born in 1986, in Medina. He was one of the juveniles held for seven years at the Guantanamo Bay detention camp where they estimated his age to be 15–16, though Al Jazeera reports his age to have been 14 at the time of his arrest. Human Rights lawyer Clive Stafford Smith identified Al Qarani as one of a dozen teenage boys held in the adult portion of the prison.

<i>Enemy Combatant</i> (book)

Enemy Combatant is a memoir by British Muslim, Moazzam Begg, co-written by Victoria Brittain, former Associate Foreign Editor for The Guardian, about Begg's detention by the government of the United States of America in Bagram Detention Facility and at Camp Echo, Guantanamo Bay and his life prior to that detention. It was published in Britain as Enemy Combatant: A British Muslim's Journey To Guantanamo and Back (ISBN 0-7432-8567-0), and in the US as Enemy Combatant: My Imprisonment at Guantanamo, Bagram, and Kandahar (ISBN 1-59558-136-7). In the US, the foreword was written by David Ignatius of The Washington Post.

An Internment Serial Number (ISN) is an identification number assigned to captives who come under control of the United States Department of Defense (DoD) during armed conflicts.

Cage is a London-based advocacy organisation which aims to empower communities impacted by the War on Terror. Cage highlights and campaigns against state policies, developed as part of the War on Terror. The organisation was formed to raise awareness of the plight of detainees held at Guantánamo Bay and elsewhere and has worked closely with former detainees held by the United States and campaigns on behalf of current detainees held without trial.

On January 16, 2010, the United States Department of Defense complied with a court order and made public a heavily redacted list of the detainees held in the Bagram Theater Internment Facility. Detainees were initially held in primitive, temporary quarters, in what was originally called the Bagram Collection Point, from late 2001. Detainees were later moved to an indoor detention center until late 2009, when newly constructed facilities were opened.

Lutfi al-Arabi al-Gharisi is a citizen of Tunisia held in extra-judicial detention by the United States.

The Do Ab prison is a prison in Panjshir, Afghanistan. The International Committee of the Red Cross reported 270 captives held in the prison were released on January 3, 2002. They reported that some of the captives had been held in the prison for as long as six years.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gita Sahgal</span> Indian writer and journalist

Gita Sahgal is a British writer, journalist, film director, and women's rights and human rights activist, whose work focusses on the issues of feminism, fundamentalism and racism.

Poems from Guantanamo: The Detainees Speak is an anthology of 22 poems by 17 Guantanamo detainees published by Marc Falkoff, a US professor of law with a doctorate in American literature.

References

  1. 1 2 Andy Worthington. "About me". andyworthington.co.uk. self-published. Archived from the original on 6 May 2008. Retrieved 19 April 2008.
  2. ↑ "Profile: Andy Worthington". The Guardian . London. 1 August 2008. Archived from the original on 26 August 2009. Retrieved 5 January 2009.
  3. ↑ "Andy Worthington". Huffington Post . Archived from the original on 5 December 2008. Retrieved 5 January 2009.
  4. ↑ Howard Kurtz (9 July 2007). "A Blog That Made It Big". The Washington Post. Retrieved 27 February 2009.
  5. ↑ "Video: Andy Worthington Discusses the Guantánamo Hunger Strike on Press TV". andyworthington.co.uk. 22 March 2013. Retrieved 13 April 2021.
  6. ↑ "Cageprisoners: People". Cageprisoners. Archived from the original on 16 June 2011. Retrieved 10 July 2011.
  7. ↑ Andy Worthington (2004). Stonehenge: Celebration & Subversion. Alternative Albion. ISBN   1-872883-76-1.
  8. ↑ Andy Worthington (2005). The Battle of the Beanfield. Enabler Publications. ISBN   0-9523316-6-7.
  9. ↑ Worthington, Andy (October 2007). The Guantanamo Files: The Stories of the 774 Detainees in America's Illegal Prison. Pluto Press. ISBN   978-0-7453-2665-8.
  10. ↑ Michelle Shephard (23 November 2008). "Guantanamo: A place that will live in infamy". Toronto Star . Archived from the original on 7 June 2011. Retrieved 23 November 2008.
  11. ↑ Stephen Grey (6 December 2007). "The Guantanamo Files: the Stories of the 774 Detainees in America's Illegal Prison". New Statesman . Archived from the original on 13 August 2009. Retrieved 28 September 2008.
  12. ↑ Rich Klein (23 November 2009). "'Top Line' at the Movies: 'Outside the Law: Stories from Guantanamo'". ABC News . Archived from the original on 25 November 2009.
  13. ↑ Andy Worthington, Polly Nash (2009). "Outside the Law: Stories from Guantánamo". Spectacle Films. Archived from the original on 1 June 2010.
  14. ↑ Andrew Sullivan (5 January 2010). "The Full Gitmo List". Atlantic magazine. Archived from the original on 11 March 2010.
  15. ↑ Juan Cole (5 January 2010). "Guantanamo: The Definitive Prisoner List (Updated for 2010)". Archived from the original on 14 February 2010.
  16. ↑ Andy Worthington (26 January 2010). "Bagram: The First Ever Prisoner List (The Annotated Version)". Archived from the original on 31 January 2010.
  17. ↑ Riz Khan (30 September 2009). "Is Bagram the new Guantanamo?". Al Jazeera. Archived from the original on 14 January 2010.
  18. ↑ Worthington, Andy (8 January 2010). "After Years in Guantanamo Prison Without Charge, Future Even More Uncertain for Yemeni Detainees" (Interview). Interviewed by Amy Goodman. Democracy Now!. Archived from the original on 4 March 2010. Retrieved 13 April 2021.
  19. 1 2 Andy Worthington (19 June 2009). "New Revelations About The Torture and Alleged Suicide of Ibn al-Shaykh al-Libi". The Public Record . Retrieved 20 June 2009.
  20. ↑ Worthington, Andy (10 February 2010). "Defending Moazzam Begg and Amnesty International" . Retrieved 13 April 2021.
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