A Guantanamo Bay detainee dubbed the “20th hijacker of 9/11” has been repatriated by the Biden administration to Saudi Arabia, where the al-Quaeda-trained would-be terrorist will receive treatment at a psychiatric facility.
Mohammad Mani Ahmad al-Qahtani, 46, will be sent from Guantanamo Bay to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, the U.S. Department of Defense announced Monday.
“On June 9, 2021, the Periodic Review Board process determined that law of war detention of Mohammad Mani Ahmad al-Qahtani was no longer necessary to protect against a continuing significant threat to the national security of the United States,” the department said in a press release. “Therefore, the PRB recommended that al-Qahtani be repatriated to his native country of Saudi Arabia, subject to security and humane treatment assurances.”
U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd James Austin notified Congress of his intent to repatriate al-Qahtani to Saudi Arabia in February, the statement said.
“The United States appreciates the willingness of Saudi Arabia and other partners to support ongoing U.S. efforts toward a deliberate and thorough process focused on responsibly reducing the detainee population and ultimately closing of the Guantanamo Bay facility,” the DOD continued.
Al-Qahtani was a “would-be 20th hijacker in the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks,” according to Reuters. He was trained by al-Quaeda and “sought unsuccessfully to enter the United States on Aug. 4, 2001 to take part in the Sept. 11 attacks,” the report added.
The 46-year-old, held at Gitmo since 2002, “will receive treatment at a psychiatric facility,” NBC News reported. “His lawyers maintain that he has displayed symptoms of schizophrenia since a young age, and in 2002 an FBI official saw al-Qahtani speaking to non-existent people, hearing voices and crouching in a corner of his cell while covering himself with a sheet for hours.”
Read the full DOD press release, below:
The Department of Defense announced today the repatriation of Mohammad Mani Ahmad al-Qahtani from the detention facility at Guantanamo Bay to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.
On June 9, 2021, the Periodic Review Board process determined that law of war detention of Mohammad Mani Ahmad al-Qahtani was no longer necessary to protect against a continuing significant threat to the national security of the United States. Therefore, the PRB recommended that al-Qahtani be repatriated to his native country of Saudi Arabia, subject to security and humane treatment assurances.
On Feb. 4, 2022, Secretary of Defense Austin notified Congress of his intent to repatriate al-Qahtani to Saudi Arabia. In consultation with our Saudi partners, we completed the requirements for responsible transfers.
The United States appreciates the willingness of Saudi Arabia and other partners to support ongoing U.S. efforts toward a deliberate and thorough process focused on responsibly reducing the detainee population and ultimately closing of the Guantanamo Bay facility.
The PRB process was established by the President’s March 7, 2011 Executive Order 13567. It is consistent with section 1023 of the National Defense Authorization Act for fiscal year 2012 and affirmed in Executive Order 13823 (January 30, 2018).
The PRB panel consists of one senior career official each from the Departments of Defense, Homeland Security, Justice, and State, along with the Joint Staff and the Office of the Director of National Intelligence.
Today, 38 detainees remain at Guantanamo Bay: 19 are eligible for transfer; 7 are eligible for a Periodic Review Board; 10 are involved in the military commissions process; and two detainees have been convicted in military commissions.