WASHINGTON, June 23 (UPI) -- A federal judge in Washington ordered the release of a Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, prison detainee, saying the man's continued detention was illogical.
In a 13-page opinion read from the bench, U.S. District Judge Richard J. Leon ordered the government to undertake diplomatic efforts to find a host country for Abdul Rahim Abdul Razak al-Janko, 30, The Washington Post reported Tuesday.
Al-Janko was tortured by al-Qaida and imprisoned by Taliban on suspicions of being a U.S. spy, then picked up by American authorities and sent to the island military prison on suspicion that he was a member of the two terrorist organizations, the Post said.
U.S. officials had argued for his detention, alleging that Janko went to Afghanistan in 2000 to join the Taliban or al-Qaida. He reportedly spent about five days at an al-Qaida guesthouse and then about three weeks at an al-Qaida training camp.
Leon said the government's rationale for its continued detention of Janko "defies common logic."
"Five days at a guesthouse in Kabul combined with 18 days at a training camp does not add up to a longstanding bond of brotherhood," Leon wrote.
Janko's attorney, Stephen Sady, called the situation "a tragedy."
"The guy was horribly tortured and then tries to report his human rights violation to the U.S. forces. He is a brave person and wants to tell his story. Instead, he gets mistaken for being a terrorist," Sady said. "This is a nightmare for an innocent man being accused of all of these things."
