I understand wanting to put sometimes sketchy government things in a good light – boy, do I! But as public servants and, even more, as part of a defense establishment, I think that one has a very high duty to the truth. After all, accurate reports are the only way a commander can make informed decisions which lead, ultimately to the life or death of troops under that commander’s charge and the success of the mission. It is always discouraging to me to have this BS pushed out and then the secrecy label applied once the DoD is called out for it. When our nation’s credibility is at stake it is even worse. You’d think Oliver North was back in charge:
“The only way we could possibly have a figure of more than 100 having gone back to the battlefield is if a huge number of these Saudis and Afghans have done this,” Worthington said. “I haven't seen any evidence this is the case whatsoever.”
The vast majority of the nearly 800 detainees originally held at Guantanamo were released under George W. Bush. Obama inherited 242 detainees. So far, he's released or transferred 44. There are 198 remaining with about 92 from Yemen, of which 40 have been cleared for release, according to The New York Times.
Worthington said it's more likely the Bush administration released a handful of detainees who were in fact senior members of the Taliban.
Read this whole thing at Politics Articles | How Many Gitmo Alumni Are Actually Back in the Fight? | Miller-McCune Online Magazine. It is an eye opener about a subject that grates like a real saddle burr, especially as the president begins his second year with a major campaign promise unfulfilled.