Justice for Jack Idema blogburst

It’s been over two weeks since the news broke that US Special Forces soldier Jack Idema had been released from nearly three years of illegal-detention in Afghanistan. Anyone hoping this event would mean Jack could finally return home to the US, however, is likely to be disappointed.

As we learned from Jack’s Afghan lawyer, Rahim Ahmadzai, last week, the US State Department is doing everything in its power to prevent Idema leaving the country:

The United States Embassy has since blocked the return of Jack Idema’s original passport, which is prima facie evidence of his innocence on several of the accusations made.

Additionally, the United States Embassy has blocked the return of Jack Idema’s documents and property from the National Security Directorate (NDS).

In spite of these difficulties, Jack remains optimistic that he will be able to get out of Afghanistan at some point in the next few weeks. What’s less certain is the fate that awaits him when he does.

See, the State Department’s refusal to hand over Jack’s passport is disturbingly reminiscent of their behaviour toward Captain Brent Bennett upon his ‘release’ last October. Back then, of course, Brent was the one on the receiving end of the State Department’s passport-fixation. On route to an unspecified destination (and still officially ‘in custody’) Brent managed to persuade airport authorities in a neutral country that his captors had no right to keep him handcuffed and without his documents.

He was issued a temporary passport and fled. As of now, he is still unable to return to the US, and is, in his own words, a ‘man without a country’.

Although Jack’s position as a free man is certainly more secure than was Brent’s at that time, it remains to be seen if he
will ultimately join his second-in-command in a state of forced ex-patriation. So that’s one thing.

Another is Jack and Brent’s need for justice. Here are men, completely guiltless, who have been tortured and illegally-imprisoned for more than two years by agents of their own state. Forced to finally release them from captivity, it cannot be right that the State Department officials responsible are allowed to walk away from the Idema case without ever being forced to account for their actions. There must be redress — Not just for Jack and Brent’s sake, but so the message is heard loud and clear that no one serving their country with honour can be used as a political pawn and then discarded.

Jack and Brent may be free, but the fight to clear their names must continue.

So what can we do? Well, anyone reading this with their own blog can sign up for the weekly Justice For Jack Idema Blogburst by emailing Cao or Rottweiler Puppy for details. I’d urge everyone to do this, as we’re still terribly short on takers. If you want to know more about the story, Cao’s Blog has a large section devoted to Jack Idema. There’s also a timeline here, and, of course, a huge amount of information is available over at SuperPatriots, without whose work none of us would have learned about Jack’s story.

You should also contact the following people and make your feelings known, especially to write letters of complaint about this despicable situation:

Secret US EMBASSY Fax: - 301-560-5729
(Local US Fax: Goes RIGHT TO Ambassador)
c/o US Ambassador Ronald Neuman
US Embassy- Afghanistan
6180 Kabul Place
Dulles, VA 20189-6180

US Consul Edward Birsner- number yet unknown
US Embassy Translator Wahid - 011-93-70201902
US Embassy Asst Consul Bashir Momman- 011-93-70201923
US Consul (friend) Dawn Schrepel- 011-93-70201908 (Fired)

Ambassador Massoud Khalili
(wounded with Massoud)
(Great and Kind man)
Islamic State of Afghanistan
Embassy of Afghanistan
Ankara, Turkey

Mr. Jahed Hamrah, Consul General (pro-Taliban)
CONSULATE GENERAL OF
AFGHANISTAN IN NEW YORK
360 Lexington Avenue,
11th Floor New York,
New, York, NY 10017
Tel.: (212) 972-2276 or 972-2277
Fax: (212) 972-9046

Chairman Peter Hoekstra
Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence
H-405, U.S. Capitol
Washington, DC 20515-6415;
Office: 202-225-4121 / Fax: 202-225-1991
Toll Free: (877) 858-9040

M. Cherif BASSIOUNI
Independent Expert of the Commission on Human Rights
On the Situation of Human Rights in Afghanistan
Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights
UNOG-OHCHR
CH-1211 Geneva 10
Ph: +41(0)22 917 97 27 Fax: +41(0)22 917 90 18

Senator Steven Saland (Jack’s Rep and Neighbor)
9 Jonathan Lane
Poughkeepsie, NY 12603

Senator Elizabeth Dole (Jack’s Rep)
United States Senate
555 Dirksen Office Building
Washington, DC 20510
Ph: 202-224.6342
Fax: 202-224.1100

Senator Richard Burr (Interested)
United States Senate
217 Russell Senate Office Building
Washington, DC 20510
Phone: 202-224-3154 / Fax: 202-228-2981

Senator Bill Nelson (in the fight on Jack’s Side)
United States Senate
Hart Senate Office Building
Room 716
Washington, DC 20510
Phone: 202-224-5274 / Fax: 202-228-2183
FL Fax 407-872-7165

Senator Dianne Feinstein (Bennett’s Representative)
United States Senate
Hart Office Building, Room 331
Washington, D.C. 20510
202-224-3841

Representative Mike McIntyre (Jack’s Representative)
United States Congress
2437 Rayburn House Office Building
Washington, DC 20515
Phone: 202-225-2731 / Fax 202-225-5773

Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger
(Reference Captain Bennett- CA citizen)
State Capitol Building
Sacramento, CA 95814
Phone: 916-445-2841 / Fax: 916-445-4633

Finally, PLEASE NOTE: The SuperPatriots and Jack images
on this site are used with WRITTEN COPYRIGHT PERMISSION and any use
by any third party is subject to legal action by SuperPatriots.US

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Kender’s Musings
Cao’s Blog
Rottweiler Puppy
Causes of Interest
Stuck On Stupid
You Don’t Know Jack
Right Voices
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