Surprise: Release Terrorists Tend To Return To Terrorism

This news comes from a rare source these days--a classified document that was actually declassified, not leaked. Apparently 25% of those released by the US from Guantanamo return to terrorism:

A declassified document made public Tuesday showed that up to 25% of all former detainees at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, subsequently engaged in terrorism or insurgency, but the percentage is much lower for those transferred under the Obama administration.


...Overall, the summary said, a total of 598 detainees had been transferred from the Guantanamo facility, with 150 confirmed or suspected of later taking part in terrorist or insurgent activities.

"Of the 150 former GTMO [Guantanamo] detainees assessed as confirmed or suspected of reengaging in terrorist or insurgent activities, the Intelligence Community assesses that 13 are dead, 54 are in custody, and 83 remain at large," the summary said.

As to why so few of those released by Obama return to terrorism, it is not because of his charisma:

The summary also said that the number of detainees returning to terrorism will likely increase, as data on the issue showed that, so far, about 2.5 years elapses between when detainees leave the Guantanamo facility and when they re-engage in terrorism.

So it's only a matter of time before we see whether the numbers of those returning to terrorism after being released by Obama grows.

Extrapolating to a country like Israel--which also deals with pressure to release terrorist--would indicate that releasing terrorists for kidnapped Israelis, as in the case of Gilad Shalit, is a two-edged sword.

Technorati Tag: Guantanamo and Terrorism.