Lazhar Ben Mohamed Tlil

Last updated
Lazhar Ben Mohamed Tlil
Born1969 (age 49–50)
Tunis
Nationality Tunis
Occupationdrug dealer
Known fora petty criminal, in Italy, who attended an Afghan training camp, who agreed to testify against Tunisians captives in Guantanamo

Lazhar Ben Mohamed Tlil is a citizen of Tunis, and longtime resident of Italy. [1] [2] [3] [4] [5] After traveling to Italy Tlil committed petty crimes to support a drug habit.

Tunis Capital and largest city of Tunisia

Tunis is the capital and the largest city of Tunisia. The greater metropolitan area of Tunis, often referred to as Grand Tunis, has some 2,700,000 inhabitants.

Italy European country

Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a European country consisting of a peninsula delimited by the Alps and surrounded by several islands. Italy is located in Southern Europe, and it is sometimes considered as part of Western Europe. The country covers a total area of 301,340 km2 (116,350 sq mi) and shares land borders with France, Switzerland, Austria, Slovenia, and the enclaved microstates of Vatican City and San Marino. Italy has a territorial exclave in Switzerland (Campione) and a maritime exclave in the Tunisian Sea (Lampedusa). With around 60 million inhabitants, Italy is the fourth-most populous member state of the European Union.

During a period when he was trying to quit his addiction to drugs Tlil traveled to Afghanistan, and received some military training at an Afghan training camp. [1] Upon his return to Italy Tlil returned to crime, and was caught, convicted and sentenced, for petty drug dealing. After al Qaeda's attacks on the Continental United States, on September 11, 2001, his attendance at the Afghan training camp became of acute interest to American security officials. When Italian prison officials allowed American security officials to interrogate him Tlil was able to identify several other Tunisians who were being held in Guantanamo.

An Afghan training camp is a camp or facility used for militant training located in Afghanistan. At the time of the September 11, 2001 attacks, Indian intelligence officials estimated that there were over 120 training camps operating in Afghanistan and Pakistan, run by a variety of militant groups. Afghan training camps are not exclusive to any one group. Afghanistan is commonly used by groups such as ISIS and Al-Qaeda.

Tlil initially agreed to testify against individuals in Guantanamo, either in Italy, or in the United States. [1] Tlil was released in return for his agreement to testify, and was placed in the Italian version of a witness protection program. When Adel Ben Mabrouk and Mohamed Ben Riadh Nasri, two Tunisians who also had a record of committing petty crimes in Italy, who had been captured in Afghanistan, and had spent seven years in extrajudicial detention in Guantanamo, were transferred to Italy, Italian prosecutor Elio Ramondini said it would be "impossible" to convict them without Tlil's testimony. [4]

United States Federal republic in North America

The United States of America (USA), commonly known as the United States or America, is a country comprising 50 states, a federal district, five major self-governing territories, and various possessions. At 3.8 million square miles, the United States is the world's third or fourth largest country by total area and is slightly smaller than the entire continent of Europe. With a population of over 327 million people, the U.S. is the third most populous country. The capital is Washington, D.C., and the most populous city is New York City. Most of the country is located contiguously in North America between Canada and Mexico.

Adel Ben Mabrouk citizen of Tunisia held at the United States Guantanamo Bay detainment camps

Adel Ben Mabrouk is a citizen of Tunisia who was held in extrajudicial detention at the United States' Guantanamo Bay detainment camps, in Cuba, from March 2002 to November 2009. Mabrouk had outstanding warrants in Italy, and shortly after his arrival in November 2009, Italian prosecutors laid charges against him.

Guantanamo Bay detention camp US military prison in Guantanamo Bay Naval Base

The Guantanamo Bay detention camp is a United States military prison located within Guantanamo Bay Naval Base, also referred to as Guantánamo, G-Bay, GTMO, and Gitmo, which is on the coast of Guantánamo Bay in Cuba. Indefinite detention without trial and torture have led the operations of this camp to be considered a major breach of human rights by Amnesty International and a violation of Due Process Clause of the Fifth and Fourteenth amendments of the United States Constitution.

According to reports from the Associated Press , from November and December 2009, while Lazhar had been willing to serve as a witness against the men, he had recently indicated that he might no longer cooperate, because he is unhappy with how Italy's witness protection program is administered. [1]

Associated Press American multinational nonprofit news agency

The Associated Press (AP) is a U.S.-based not-for-profit news agency headquartered in New York City. Founded in 1846, it operates as a cooperative, unincorporated association. Its members are U.S. newspapers and broadcasters.

The Associated Press reported he was also being considered as a possible witness against some of the senior al Qaeda captives who were then expected to face trial in the USA. [1]

In 2012 Tlil was profiled in the news again, as a vocal critic of Italy's witness protection program. [6]

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References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 Victor L. Simpson, Colleen Barry (2009-11-14). "Witness in Italy may hold key to Guantanamo trials". Associated Press. Archived from the original on 2009-11-16.
  2. ↑ "Tunisian May Hold Key to Guantanamo Trials". CBS News. 2009-11-13. Retrieved 2015-09-27. Tlil's Italian court-appointed lawyer says he has already provided important details to a team of U.S. investigators and identified from photos fellow Tunisian trainees in the Afghan camps. While the cases are confidential, authorities say he also has provided important information to the Italians about several detainees at Guantanamo who might be brought to Italy and tried in a criminal court.
  3. ↑ Victor L. Simpson (2009-12-01). "Italy may accept more Gitmo detainees". Seattle Times . Retrieved 2015-09-27. Lazhar Ben Mohamed Tlil, a key prosecution witness, said Nasri, known by his alias Abou Doujana, was head of an organization of Tunisians at a camp in Afghanistan where recruits received both ideological and military training. It was at this camp, the witness said, that he and other recruits were taught that “to kill infidels was the duty of every Muslim” and were prepared to carry out suicide attacks.
  4. 1 2 "Testigo en Italia sería clave para juicios de Guantánamo" [Witness in Italy would be key to Guantanamo trials] (in Spanish). El Mexicano. 2009-11-13. Retrieved 2015-09-27. "Si me preguntan sobre su importancia como testigo, les diría que es importante para mí", dijo el fiscal Elio Ramondini recientemente a la Associated Press en una entrevista en su despacho en el palacio de justicia de Milán. Sin Tlil, el juicio a los sospechosos de Guantánamo en Italia "no es difícil, sino imposible", aseguró.
  5. ↑ Victor L. Simpson (2009-12-01). "Italy's Gitmo detainees linked to al-Qaida base". Contra Costa Times. Archived from the original on 2015-10-05. Retrieved 2015-09-27. Lazhar Ben Mohamed Tlil, a key prosecution witness, said Nasri, known by his alias Abou Doujana, was head of an organization of Tunisians at a camp in Afghanistan where recruits received both ideological and military training. It was at this camp, the witness said, that he and other recruits were taught that "to kill infidels was the duty of every Muslim" and were prepared to carry out suicide attacks.
  6. ↑ Victor L. Simpson (2012-10-14). "Italy's secret anti-mob weapon: witness protection". San Diego Union Tribune . Retrieved 2015-09-27. Lazhar Ben Mohamed Tlil, a Tunisian who became an Islamic militant and was trained in Afghanistan to kill Americans, who entered the witness protection program after providing information to Italian investigators about several detainees at Guantanamo, his court-appointed lawyer, Davide Boschi, told The Associated Press.
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