Afghan Biographies

Wazir, Haji Pacha


Name Wazir, Haji Pacha
Ethnic backgr. Pashtun
Date of birth
Function/Grade Prominent Bagram Detainee from Nangahar Province
History and Biodata

3. Biodata:
US forces have released a tribal ‎elder of Sherzad district in eastern Nangahar province after ‎spending seven and a half years in the notorious Bagram ‎jail.‎ The foreign forces had detained Haji Pacha Wazir on the ‎charge of cooperation with Taliban insurgents. He was ‎handed over to Nangarhar governor Gul Agha Sherzai 20100225.‎ Speaking at a gathering held in this regard, Sherzai said the ‎release came after their repeated calls to the peace ‎promotion council and officials of the US embassy and ‎president Hamid Karzai.

Background:
Wazir, a well-respected owner of a successful transfer and currency exchange business in Afghanistan, was kidnapped by the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) in 2002 while on a business trip to Dubai, United Arab Emirates. Originally filed by International Justice Network in September 2006, Mr. Wazir's habeas corpus petition argues that there is no factual or legal basis for his detention, and seeks his immediate release from U.S. custody. In a related decision by Judge John D. Bates in April 2009, IJNetwork defeated the Obama Administration's attempt to dismiss the petitions of three non-Afghan nationals held at Bagram. In his April decision, Judge Bates held that the Court had jurisdiction to hear the cases of two Yemenis detainees and one Tunisian who -- like Mr. Wazir -- were detained outside of Afghanistan and brought to Bagram by the U.S. government. The District Court's decision distinguished Wazir's case based on his Afghan citizenship. Despite having been taken into custody outside Afghanistan and rendered to Bagram by the U.S government, Judge Bates found that Wazir had no right to challenge his detention, citing potential "friction" with the Afghan government.

Last Modified 2011-05-16
Established 2010-02-27