Ahmed Khalfan Ghailani

Nationality: Tanzanian

Ahmed Khalfan Ghailani, a Tanzanian believed to be about 34, has been charged with murder in violation of the laws of war, attacking civilians and civilian objects, causing serious bodily injury, destruction of property in violation of the laws of war, terrorism, and conspiracy to commit terrorism for his alleged involvement in the August 1998 bombing of the US Embassy in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. When the US initially announced charges against Ghailani in March 2008, it said it would be seeking the death penalty. However, once Ghailani was formally charged in October 2008, it became a non-capital case.

Ghailani was previously indicted for his role in the embassy bombing by federal prosecutors in New York. Four co-defendants were put on trial in federal court in 2001 and sentenced to life without parole, but Ghailani was a fugitive at the time. He was captured in Pakistan in 2004, held incommunicado in secret CIA detention for two years, where he was essentially “disappeared,” and transferred to Guantanamo in 2006.

He is now slated for trial by military commission. The only new charge contained in the military commission indictment alleges that Ghailani continued to provide material support and resources to al-Qaeda from 1998 until 2004.

Human Rights Watch believes that the successful prosecution of four of Ghailani’s co-defendants shows that the civilian criminal justice system works and that there is no legitimate basis for trying Ghailani in the military commission system.

Human Rights Watch Commentary:

• Human Rights Watch briefing paper section,“List of ‘Ghost Prisoners’ Possibly in CIA Custody,” December 1, 2005

Military Commissions Documents:

• General Information Page


• Charges Sworn – March 31, 2008


• Charges Referred – October 3, 2008