Legal & Human Rights Reports
Guantánamo Bay has long operated outside the boundaries of lawful detention and fair trial standards. This section brings together essential legal documents, court decisions, international treaties, white papers, and UN reports that demonstrate how the detention facility violates both U.S. constitutional principles and international human rights law. These resources are vital for legal professionals, journalists, educators, and advocates seeking evidence-based accountability.
U.S. Court Cases
▶ Rasul v. Bush (2004)
The U.S. Supreme Court ruled that Guantánamo detainees have the right to challenge their detention in U.S. federal courts, recognising jurisdiction despite the facility being offshore.
🔗 Read the ruling
▶ Hamdan v. Rumsfeld (2006)
Struck down the Bush administration’s military commissions as illegal under both U.S. military law and the Geneva Conventions.
🔗 Read the ruling
▶ Boumediene v. Bush (2008)
Affirmed detainees’ constitutional right to habeas corpus, overturning parts of the Military Commissions Act.
🔗 Read the opinion
▶ Parhat v. Gates (2008)
Invalidated the “enemy combatant” status of a Chinese Uyghur detainee, exposing the weak evidence often used to justify imprisonment.
🔗 Case summary
▶ Aamer v. Obama (2014)
Challenged force-feeding of hunger strikers at Guantánamo; although dismissed, it spotlighted violations of bodily autonomy.
🔗 SCOTUS case file
International Law Violations
▶ Geneva Conventions (1949)
Guantánamo violates Common Article 3, which prohibits torture and inhumane treatment of prisoners.
🔗 Read the conventions
▶ UN Convention Against Torture (CAT)
The U.S. is a signatory, yet many interrogation practices at Guantánamo—such as waterboarding—constitute torture under this treaty.
🔗 Read the convention
▶ International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR)
Articles 9 (freedom from arbitrary detention) and 14 (right to fair trial) are routinely violated at Guantánamo.
🔗 Read the ICCPR
United Nations Reports & Resolutions
▶ UN Human Rights Council Reports on Guantánamo
Multiple reports from the UN have condemned the U.S. for violations of international law and urged the closure of the facility.
🔗 Search UN Guantánamo reports
▶ UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention (2022)
Declared detentions at Guantánamo “a stain on U.S. human rights record” and called for reparations.
🔗 Read the UN statement
Human Rights White Papers & Investigations
▶ Guantánamo: A Legal Black Hole (Amnesty International, 2005)
Landmark report documenting how Guantánamo violates international legal norms.
🔗 Read the full report
▶ Guantánamo: The Cost of Indefinite Detention (Centre for American Progress, 2012)
Breaks down the financial burden of operating the prison and argues for closure.
🔗 View report
▶ No End in Sight: America’s Enduring Reliance on Guantánamo (Human Rights Watch, 2023)
Outlines legal and ethical failures across administrations in shutting down the facility.
🔗 Read the report
▶ Globalising Torture: CIA Secret Detention and Extraordinary Rendition (Open Society Foundations, 2013)
Details the broader global network of unlawful detention, including Guantánamo.
🔗 Download the report
Military Commissions & U.S. Policy Frameworks
▶ Military Commissions Act of 2006 (and 2009 revisions)
Legalised military trials with lower evidentiary standards, secret evidence, and limited appeal rights.
🔗 2006 Act text
🔗 2009 Revision
▶ Senate Intelligence Committee Torture Report (2014)
CIA reveals use of torture at black sites and interrogations of detainees sent to Guantánamo.
🔗 Official executive summary
🔗 Direct PDF (NYT mirror)
▶ Periodic Review Board Files (DoD)
Ongoing administrative reviews of detainees’ threat levels and eligibility for release.
🔗 Visit PRB portal
▶ Khalid Sheikh Mohammed Case (Military Commissions)
The 9/11 mastermind’s ongoing, two-decade-long pretrial process reflects the failure of military justice.
🔗 Case info