42 Facts About Shaker Aamer

Shaker Abd al-Rahim Muhammad Aamer is a Saudi suspected terrorist who was held by the United States in the Guantanamo Bay detention camp in Cuba for more than thirteen years without charge.

Shaker Aamer had been a legal resident in Britain for years before his imprisonment; the UK government repeatedly demanded his release, and many people there called for him to be released.

Shaker Aamer denies involvement in terrorist activity and his lawyer, Clive Stafford Smith, said the leaked documents would not stand up in court.

Shaker Aamer claimed that part of the evidence came from an unreliable witness and that confessions Aamer made had been obtained through torture.

Shaker Aamer has been described as a "charismatic leader" who spoke up and fought for the rights of fellow prisoners.

Shaker Aamer alleges that he has been subject to torture in detention.

Shaker Aamer has suffered decline in his mental and physical health over the years, as he participated in hunger strikes to protest his detention conditions, and was held in solitary confinement for much of the time.

Shaker Aamer was born on 21 December 1966 and grew up in Medina in Saudi Arabia.

Shaker Aamer lived and traveled in the United States, Europe and the Middle East.

Shaker Aamer lived and studied in Georgia and Maryland in 1989 and 1990.

Shaker Aamer moved to the United Kingdom in 1996 where he met Zin Siddique, a British woman; they married in 1997 and he established legal residency in Britain.

Shaker Aamer had indefinite leave to remain in the UK, and was applying for British citizenship.

Shaker Aamer worked as an Arabic translator for London law firms.

Shaker Aamer took his family to Afghanistan in 2001, where he was working for an Islamic charity when the US invaded the country later that year.

The leaked documents alleged that Shaker Aamer had confessed to interrogators that he was in Tora Bora with Osama bin Laden at the time of the US bombing.

In September 2009, Zachary Katznelson, a Reprieve lawyer, said that Shaker Aamer had told of suffering severe beatings at the Bagram facility.

Shaker Aamer said that close to a dozen men had beaten him, including interrogators who represented themselves as officers of MI5, the United Kingdom's internal counter-terrorism agency.

Shaker Aamer did not determine if the pistol was loaded.

Shaker Aamer said it occurred to him that it had been left either so he could kill himself, or that, if he picked it up, he could be shot and killed on the excuse he was trying to shoot them.

Shaker Aamer says that the "MI5" interrogators told him he had two choices: agree to spy on suspected jihadists in the United Kingdom; or remain in US custody.

Shaker Aamer is on the compensation list and part of the deal, but details are not known as most of the deal is still secret.

Shaker Aamer has been described as an unofficial spokesman for the detainees at Guantanamo.

Shaker Aamer has spoken up for the welfare of prisoners, negotiating with camp commanders and organizing protests against cruel treatment.

Shaker Aamer organized and participated in a hunger strike in 2005 in which he lost half of his weight.

Shaker Aamer demanded the prisoners be treated according to the Geneva Convention, allowing the detainees to form a grievance committee.

In September 2006, Shaker Aamer's attorneys filed a 16-page motion arguing for his removal from isolation in Guantanamo Bay prison.

Shaker Aamer continued to take part in additional hunger strikes and was held in solitary confinement for most of the time.

Shaker Aamer's lawyers described his solitary confinement as "cruel" and said his health was affected to a point where they feared for his life.

On 18 September 2006, Shaker Aamer's attorneys filed a 16-page motion arguing for his removal from isolation in Guantanamo Bay prison.

The motion alleges that Shaker Aamer had been held in solitary confinement for 360 days at the time of filing, and was tortured by beatings, exposure to temperature extremes, and sleep deprivation, which together caused him to suffer to the point of becoming mentally unbalanced.

Shaker Aamer said that Aamer's mental and physical health was deteriorating.

Binyam Mohamed, an Ethiopian prisoner who formerly occupied a cell one door down from Shaker Aamer, has said since his release that he knew why Shaker Aamer was still in the prison camps.

Shaker Aamer was always forward, he would translate for people, he'd fight for them, and if he had any problems in the block he'd shout at the guards.

Shaker Aamer said that Aamer had been brought to "Camp No," a secret interrogation black site outside the camp, with the three men who died on the day of the event.

Horton wrote that Shaker Aamer's repatriation was being delayed so that he could not testify about his alleged torture in Bagram or the events of 9 June 2006.

In 2013, Shaker Aamer told his attorneys that he was among the growing group of active hunger strikers.

Shaker Aamer's lawyer said Aamer spent 22 hours a day alone in his cell.

Shaker Aamer was among a group of detainees who filed a court challenge to the authorities' practice of force feeding those on hunger strikes.

In 2014, his lawyers filed a motion on Shaker Aamer's behalf seeking his release on the grounds that his health is "gravely diminished".

Supporters of Shaker Aamer criticized the UK government for not doing enough on his behalf; they urged the government to step up their efforts.

The newspaper reported that Shaker Aamer had several serious medical complaints from years of "inhumane" detention conditions, and that the UK gave false hope to his family.

On 30 October 2015, Shaker Aamer was flown from Cuba, stepping on British soil at 13.00 GMT.