The Curious Case of An Ex-Gitmo Detainee in Syria

Many years ago in tracking the jihadist insurgent scene in Syria, the issue of former Guantánamo Bay detainees turning up in Syria came to some prominence on account of the group called Harakat Sham al-Islam (“Sham al-Islam Movement”). The group, which is presently integrated into Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham, was founded by Moroccan foreign fighters. Its leader was Ibrahim bin Shakaran, who was killed in the Kassab offensive in Latakia in north Syria in 2014. Other former Guantánamo detainees in the group’s ranks included Muhammad al-‘Alami (killed in 2013) and Muhammad Mizouz (who was identified in December 2013 and whose current status remains unknown). Following these revelations, interest in the subject died down as no further information became available.

There is however at least one other former Guantánamo detainee who made it to the insurgent-held areas of Syria. That detainee is….