Al Hajj v. Trump

At a Glance

Date Filed: 

September 6, 2017

Current Status 

In June 2021, after a hearing before the Periodic Review Board, the government determined that Al Hajj's detention is "no longer necessary" for U.S. national security and approved him for transfer out of Guantanamo. His health condition remains critical, after multiple incidents of self-harm beginning in 2019. The Biden administration must identify a safe country for his transfer, with appropriate support for rehabilitation, and transfer him without any further delay.

Co-Counsel 

Sabrina Shroff

Client(s) 

Case Description 

Sharqawi Al Hajj is a 47-year-old citizen of Yemen who has been detained without charge at Guantánamo since 2004, after over two years in CIA sites. He faces the prospect of a death sentence in Guantanamo not only because his detention is indefinite, but because he is gravely ill today and faces serious risks to his life. In June 2021, the Biden administration finally approved him for transfer out of Guantanamo through the Periodic Review Board process, but has yet to take further steps to effectuate his actual transfer.

Al Hajj has a long history of severe physical symptoms - acute abdominal and urinary pain, extreme weakness and fatigue, and recurring jaundice - which are exacerbated by one of his only means of autonomous protest against his plight, in the form of repeated hunger strikes. In July 2017, he collapsed in his cell and required emergency hospitalization after a prolonged strike during which he eventually stopped drinking water. An outside medical opinion obtained by his counsel in support of an emergency motion for an independent medical evaluation found that Al Hajj - through a combination of his physical pain, hunger strikes and untreated torture - was at risk of "total bodily collapse."

Al Hajj's mental health in particular has taken a dramatic turn over the past few years. In July and August 2019, after a series of increasingly concerning communications with his counsel, he made specific suicidal statements for the first time, stating that he wanted to "cut his nerves to make myself bleed" and "try to kill myself" because "for how long can I be patient." During a telephone call with his counsel on August 19, 2019, he then made an actual attempt by cutting his wrist with a piece of glass.  He has continued to inflict self-harm out of desperation about his indefinite detention.

In April 2021, despite his struggling health, Al Hajj appeared for a hearing before the Periodic Review Board. At the hearing, his counsel made a statement detailing the picture of his declining physical and mental health. In June 2021, the Board determined that his continuing detention was "no longer necessary" for the security of the United States and approved him for transfer from Guantanamo. Al Hajj now awaits actual transfer. He would accept resettlement in any safe country with appropriate support.  

Case Timeline

June 8, 2021
Periodic Review Board clears Al Hajj for transfer
June 8, 2021
Periodic Review Board clears Al Hajj for transfer
After a hearing before the Board in April 2021, the Board approved Al Hajj for transfer from Guantanamo, determining that his continuing detention was "no longer necessary" for U.S. national security.
September 10, 2019
District court denies emergency motion for independent medical evaluation and medical records
September 10, 2019
District court denies emergency motion for independent medical evaluation and medical records
The court characterized Al Hajj's suicide attempt as a "scratch." It found that it was "satisfied that his physical and mental health are being monitored closely by Guantanamo medical personnel," despite his demonstrable descent from statements to attempt and his ability to access broken glass in cutting his wrist.
August 28, 2019
District court schedules status conference for September 6, 2019
August 28, 2019
District court schedules status conference for September 6, 2019
The court schedules a status conference following an emergency motion reporting Mr. Al Hajj's suicide attempt August 19.
August 22, 2019
CCR files a third emergency motion for a status conference following Al Hajj's suicide attempt
August 22, 2019
CCR files a third emergency motion for a status conference following Al Hajj's suicide attempt
August 7, 2019
CCR files renewed motion for status conference to alert the court to suicidal statements by Al Hajj
August 7, 2019
CCR files renewed motion for status conference to alert the court to suicidal statements by Al Hajj
October 26, 2018
CCR files motion for status conference to discuss Al Hajj's declining mental health
October 26, 2018
CCR files motion for status conference to discuss Al Hajj's declining mental health
March 9, 2018
Al-Hajj and ten other detainees file their reply to the goverment's opposition
March 9, 2018
Al-Hajj and ten other detainees file their reply to the goverment's opposition
February 16, 2018
Government responds to habeas petition
February 16, 2018
Government responds to habeas petition
January 18, 2018
Court orders Trump administration to respond
January 18, 2018
Court orders Trump administration to respond
January 11, 2018
Habeas petition on behalf of Al Hajj and 10 other detainees
January 11, 2018
Habeas petition on behalf of Al Hajj and 10 other detainees
On January 11, CCR and co-counsel file the first major challenge to Trump’s Guantánamo policies. This collective filing is on behalf of eleven prisoners who are detained without charge, all for more than a decade. The filing argues that the petitioners’ perpetual detentions violate the Constitution and the Authorization for Use of Military Force (AUMF), and asks the court to intervene on behalf of the men who have been deemed “forever prisoners.” On January 22, briefs of amicus curiae are filed by Muslim, interfaith, and civil rights groups and by due process scholars, and on January 24, a brief is filed by the Center for Victims of Torture.
September 6, 2017
Emergency motion for independent medical evaluation and medical records