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Uruguay: Jihad Diyab’s back

Let’s hope Gitmo alumnus Abu Wa’el Dhiab, a.k.a. Jihad Ahmad Diyab, a.k.a. Abu Wael Dihab, a.k.a. Jihad Ahmed Mujstafa Diyab, a.k.a. Jihad Diyab has a frequent-flyer card by now.

The last time we looked, he was on his way back from Venezuela, where he had turned up at Uruguay’s consulate in Caracas and asked for assistance to fly to Turkey or some other country. His family is in Turkey, and refuse to go to Uruguay.

Turkey doesn’t want him.

Back then I posted,

A known terrorist, who supposedly needs crutches to get around, goes missing for several weeks, to eventually turn up some 4,600 miles away from Montevideo (a little under the distance from New York to Moscow), in Venezuela, of all places, just so he can petition the Uruguayan consulate – which he could do in Montevideo – to “ask for assistance to fly to Turkey or some other country to be reunited with his family.”

After his return, he went on an extended hunger strike, following which he was flown to South Africa (I assume at Uruguayan taxpayers’ expense).

As it turns out, South Africa doesn’t want him either:

Former Guantanamo detainee Jihad Diyab is returning to Uruguay this weekend after being denied entry to South Africa, according to Christian Mirza, a former refugee mediator for the Uruguayan government.

As you may recall, the former member of the “Syrian Group”, which was “comprised of dismantled terrorist cells that escaped Syrian authorities and fled to Afghanistan (AF) in 2000,” was released by the Obama administration from Guantanamo and sent to Uruguay. He went to Argentina last February, and declared himself  “ready to fight“, just the thing when you want to make yourself welcome to a foreign country and your first name is Jihad.

After that, Diyab tried to enter Brazil three times but was turned away at the border. Authorities lost track of him, he turned up in Venezuela, was returned to Uruguay where he went on hunger strike, and now this.

Anyone running a pool on where he’ll turn up next?



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The Halloween Carnival of Latin America and the Caribbean

ARGENTINA
Vatican, Argentina to open ‘dirty war’ files. The initial opening will be restricted to those directly affected by the purges from 1976 to 1983

The Vatican and Argentina’s bishops have finished cataloguing their archives from the country’s “dirty war” and will soon make them available to victims and their relatives who have long accused church members of complicity with the military dictatorship. The 3,000 files being released, though, are a fraction of the documentation believed to be in the possession of the Argentine church.

A joint statement Tuesday by the Vatican and the Argentine bishops’ conference said the process of digitizing the archives had been completed and that procedures to access the information would be forthcoming. No date was set, and the opening for now is restricted to victims, detainees, their relatives and the religious superiors of victims who were priests or nuns.

BOLIVIA
Gold Rush in Bolivia sparks conflict between miners and the community. Community members and miners are clashing north of Bolivia’s La Paz. Meanwhile, Bolivian Amazon rivers are being affected by the excessive dumping of mercury.

BRAZIL
Brazil Turns Away From Establishment Politicians in Local Elections.

Even as President Michel Temer struggles to assure investors that Brazil is politically stable, this month’s municipal elections show restless voters fed up with Brazil’s ruling class and willing to gamble on unconventional newcomers

CHILE
Is Chile leaning to the right again?

COLOMBIA
Colombia government peace team to meet with Uribe allies

CUBA
What could possibly go wrong? Congress: Cuba to Share Critical U.S. Intel With Iranian Spies. Intel sharing with Cuba endangers America, lawmakers warn

ECUADOR
HABITAT III: UN conference agrees new urban development agenda creating sustainable, equitable cities for all

He said that the action-oriented outcome document, known as the New Urban Agenda, enshrined now in the ‘Quito Declaration on Sustainable Cities and Human Settlements for All,’ should be seen as an extension of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, agreed by 193 Member States of the UN in September 2015.

GUATEMALA
Comparing Presidential Corruption Scandals in Guatemala and Brazil: Part 2

HAITI
Clinton Campaign Coordinated With State Department to Answer Foundation Questions About Haiti. Clinton faced questions about $500,000 donation from Algeria

Following a report in the Washington Post that the foundation raked in millions from foreign governments while Clinton was at the State Department, Clinton’s team discussed over email how to address questions about the Algeria donation from other outlets.

JAMAICA
More soldiers for western Jamaica

Government has announced plans to augment the Jamaica Defence Force (JDF) in western Jamaica in an effort to have speedier and more effective response to any violent upsurge in that section of the island

MEXICO
The daily struggle for life in Ecatepec, Mexico’s most dangerous city. At least 600 women have been murdered since 2012 in this slum, half-an-hour from capital

DoD Official: U.S.-Mexico Military-to-Military Relationship ‘Worth Strengthening’

Clinton Trots Out Mexican Music Legend Vicente Fernández on Univision, Telemundo, as she panders,

PANAMA
COPA Launches New Low Cost Carrier to Colombia and More (H/T JC)

Panama’s Copa Holdings has unveiled a new low-cost carrier, Wingo, as it aims to turn its loss-making Colombian operations around.

Bogota-based Wingo will operate its first flight on 1 December, and will take over all of Copa Colombia’s routes except its flights to and from Panama City.

PUERTO RICO
Patients left in limbo as more doctors flee Puerto Rico

URUGUAY
Possible new home for Gitmo ex-detainee unhappy in Uruguay, but Lord knows where,

The group did not say which country made the offer and it was unclear if Dhiab has travel documents. Uruguayan officials did not respond to requests for comment on Saturday.

VENEZUELA
Opposition Protests Will Be Met With Colectivos: Venezuelan VP



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The pre-debate Carnival of Latin America and the Caribbean

Yes, there’s a presidential debate tonight. Meh.

ARGENTINA
Argentina plans eurobond

Probe into Nisman’s death will go to federal courts

Stiuso habló de una “guerra” entre espías tras la muerte de Nisman. La versión del ex director de la SIDE sobre su pelea con el espionaje K

En su testimonio, afirmó que se dio una orden ilegal a Migraciones para saber sus movimientos, reveló el dueño de un teléfono clave y vinculó a Aníbal Fernandéz.

Argentina Seeks To Export Its Human Rights Policy

BOLIVIA
“Narcos”. Artículo completo de Veja sobre Evo y Álvaro – Evo Morales and his vice-president Álvaro García Linera, investigated by the DEA.

Give it up, Evo: Bolivia’s Morales accuses Chile of restricting access to ports

BRAZIL
Brazil’s Supreme Court Gives OK to Open Probe of New President Temer

Judge approves preliminary investigation, which is based on plea-bargain testimony by a key witness that implicates President Michel Temer, other PMDB members

CHILE
CIA found ‘convincing evidence’ Chilean dictator was behind 1976 D.C. attack

The latest revelations about the Cold War-era case come on the 40th anniversary of the assassination of Orlando Letelier, a leading opponent of the Pinochet regime and onetime Chilean foreign minister, and his think-tank colleague, Ronni Moffitt, in a car bomb on D.C.’s Embassy Row.

COLOMBIA
“The FARC’s abortionist confessed to [performing] 400+ abortions on abused girls. Is there pardon, justice, and reparation?”

CUBA
How Kim (DPRK) and Castro (Cuba) Blackmail Abe (Japan)

Nearly on a monthly basis, some senior North Korean is on a “working visit” to Cuba. Or some senior Cuban regime official is on a “working visit” to North Korea.

With the exception of China, there’s no other nation in the world that North Korean officials visit with such frequency.

DOMINICAN REPUBLIC
Dominican Republic’s Former Anti-Drug Chief Sentenced to 20 Years

ECUADOR
Ecuadorian Police Oust Dozens of Cubans Demanding Visas from Quito Park

IMMIGRATION
HILLARY: THE THIRD WORLD HAS A “RIGHT” TO MOVE TO THE UNITED STATES. No, they don’t.

JAMAICA
American says he wants to protect Jamaica’s natural ganja

MEXICO
Priest Killings Highlight Mexico Govt’s Credibility Problem

NICARAGUA
Nicaragua rejects U.S. bill for loans with strings attached (emphasis added)
The Nicaraguan government was responding to the Nicaraguan Investment Conditionality Act, a bill passed by the U.S. House of Representatives on Wednesday. A version was introduced by Senator Ted Cruz in the U.S. Senate earlier this month.

Nicaragua on Thursday criticized a proposal by U.S. lawmakers that would require the Central American country, which will hold elections in November, to make political changes in order to receive international loans.
. . .
The Nicaraguan government was responding to the Nicaraguan Investment Conditionality Act, a bill passed by the U.S. House of Representatives on Wednesday. A version was introduced by Senator Ted Cruz in the U.S. Senate earlier this month.

The bill proposes blocking Nicaragua from obtaining loans from international financial institutions unless the country “is taking effective steps to hold free, fair, and transparent elections.”

On Nov. 6, Nicaraguans will vote for president and 90 members of the National Assembly.

President Daniel Ortega is the favorite as he seeks his third consecutive term.

PANAMA
Smithsonian opens climate change lab in Panama

PARAGUAY
Polka lessons

Budgets have been roughly in balance and public debt is low. The central bank aims for an inflation rate of 4.5% and usually gets close. Commercial banks are healthy (in part because they charge high interest rates and face little competition). Regulation, like the tax code, is business-friendly. Independent trade unions, suppressed under Stroessner, are weak.

PERU
Peru President Says Unasur Unable to Resolve Venezuela Crisis

PUERTO RICO
Where were you when the lights went out? The Puerto Rico blackout, from space

URUGUAY
More on Abu Wa’el Dhiab: Uruguay says ex-Gitmo detainee demands exceed government

“The Uruguayan government is doing everything possible,” Vazquez said. “But as I’ve said in the past: If the countries where the Syrian citizen wants to go don’t take him, we can’t do anything about it.”

VENEZUELA
Military and Police Corruption: Venezuela’s Growing Evil



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The Deplorables Carnival of Latin America and the Caribbean

In an attempt at demonizing any opposition, presidential candidate Hillary Clinton tars the Trump supporters as deplorable and/or clueless, and later tried to walk it back, making what even Mexican media called a half apology.

ARGENTINA
Uber Drivers in Argentina Could Face 10 Days in Jail. Officials Raid Buenos Aires Offices and Plan to Charge them for Operating Without a Permit

Protesters Set Up 100 Soup Kitchens in Argentine Capital. What took them so long?

Nisman’s Iran case reaches new appeal stage

The efforts to reopen the complaint filed by late AMIA special prosecutor Alberto Nisman against former president Cristina Fernández de Kirchner in January last year will continue this week with a hearing at an appeals court to determine if Federal Judge Daniel Rafecas had reason to deny such a petition from the DAIA Jewish community group last month.

In parallel, Federal Judge Claudio Bonadio has been making progress in an accusation of treason against Fernández de Kirchner and former foreign minister Héctor Timerman in relation to the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with Iran.

ARGENTINA, BRAZIL, COLOMBIA:
South America’s Drug Slums: Jurisdiction of Organized Crime

BELIZE
Belize will not support second probe into death of Guatemalan teen

BOLIVIA
Bolivia proposes prison time for illegal coca production

BRAZIL
Upcoming event at Cato: Brazillionaires: Wealth, Power, Decadence, and Hope in an American Country, September 13, 2016, 12:00PM to 1:30PM

If you can’t make it to the event, you can watch it live online at www.cato.org/live and join the conversation on Twitter using #Brazillionaires. Follow @CatoEvents on Twitter to get future event updates, live streams, and videos from the Cato Institute.

Rousseff Abandons Brazil’s Capital after Ouster

Brazil’s Attorney General Asks High Court to Allow Abortions for Women With Zika. Brazil’s attorney general is urging the nation’s Supreme Court to permit abortions for pregnant women infected with the Zika virus.

CHILE
Affluent Chile draws migrants but it’s no picnic for them

COLOMBIA
Colombia’s ELN rebels and paramilitary heirs scramble to occupy FARC territory

The Secret History of Colombia’s Paramilitaries and the U.S. War on Drugs. After decades of atrocities, the warlords were finally being held to account. Then the Americans stepped in.

Colombian Condemns Murder of Owner of FARC Transition-Zone Property

CUBA
Cuba’s Walled Garden

House panel will consider bill to halt Cuba flights next week

Sirley Ávila León Cuban Democracy Leader Disappears From Commercial Flight

ECUADOR
Ecuador Begins Drilling for Oil in Pristine Corner of Amazon

Sweden puts pressure on Ecuador over questioning Julian Assange

HAITI
Hillary Cares About You? Ask the Haitians She Ripped Off

JAMAICA
Prince Buster: Jamaica’s True Voice of the People

MEXICO
‘Wolf Boys’: 2 American teens become brutal hitmen for feared Mexican drug cartel

Chinese Billionaire Linked to Giant Aluminum Stockpile in Mexican Desert. U.S. aluminum executives claim Liu Zhongtian, founder of Chinese metals conglomerate China Zhongwang, used a factory in Mexico to game the global trade system

PANAMA
Panama Papers: Denmark to buy leaked data

PUERTO RICO
Latin America’s Largest Sail Training Ship Docks in Puerto Rico

URUGUAY
Abu Wa’el Dhiab, a.k.a. Jihad Ahmad Diyab, a.k.a. Abu Wael Dihab, a.k.a. Jihad Ahmed Mujstafa Diyab, is still at it:
Hunger-striking ex-Guantanamo inmate leaves Uruguay hospital

Uruguay searching for country to take ex-Guantanamo detainee (emphasis added)

Syrian native Abu Wa’el Dhiab has repeatedly said he is unhappy in Uruguay and is demanding he be allowed to leave the South American country, which took him in with five other former Guantanamo prisoners in 2014.
. . .
Although there’s nothing impeding Dhiab’s family from coming to Uruguay, the former prisoner is against it, Mirza said. “We’d have to ask ourselves why his family could not come to Uruguay when the families of other Guantanamo refugees came here when they wished.”
. . .
Dhiab also says that he feels like a prisoner in Uruguay.

A prisoner who traveled to Argentina, and through Brazil to Venezuela, that is.

VENEZUELA
FROM VOODOO ECONOMICS TO VOODOO

Almost 60 Percent of Venezuelans Say They Want Out



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Venezuela: Look where the Gitmo guy went! UPDATED

Authorities in seven countries spent the last month or two trying to locate Gitmo alumnus Abu Wa’el Dhiab, a.k.a. Jihad Ahmad Diyab, a.k.a. Abu Wael Dihab, a.k.a. Jihad Ahmed Mujstafa Diyab, who went missing from Uruguay.

For brevity’s sake, let’s call him Diyab.

The former member of the “Syrian Group”, which was “comprised of dismantled terrorist cells that escaped Syrian authorities and fled to Afghanistan (AF) in 2000,” was released by the Obama administration from Guantanamo and sent to Uruguay. He went to Argentina last February, and declared himself  “ready to fight“,

After that, Diyab tried to enter Brazil three times but was turned away at the border. Then authorities lost track of him, until now.

And he’s in Venezuela:
Former Gitmo Detainee Shows Up in Venezuela. Abu Wa’el Dhiab unexpectedly left his home in Uruguay, raising concerns (emphasis added)

A former Guantanamo Bay detainee who unexpectedly disappeared from Uruguay last month showed up in Venezuela on Tuesday, saying he wanted help traveling to Turkey, Uruguay’s Foreign Ministry said.

Abu Wa’el Dhiab, who was transferred by the Obama administration to Montevideo, Uruguay, in 2014, appeared at Uruguay’s consulate in Caracas and asked for assistance to fly to Turkey or some other country to be reunited with his family.

“He made it clear he has no interest in returning to Uruguay, but that he needs our country’s help,” the ministry said late Wednesday, adding that Venezuelan authorities were aware of the situation.

A spokesman for the Venezuelan Foreign Ministry in Caracas had said earlier that the office had no information about the former detainee’s arrival.
. . .
Mr. Dhiab’s travel plans may raise additional concern, given Turkey’s porous border with Syria and its use as an entry point for volunteers looking to join Islamic State.

How did he get there? He supposedly needs crutches to walk.

Who helped him along the way? Who’s bankrolling him?

Where is he staying? With whom? Doing what?

UPDATE:
The more I think about it, the worse this story looks.

A known terrorist, who supposedly needs crutches to get around, goes missing for several weeks, to eventually turn up some 4,600 miles away from Montevideo (a little under the distance from New York to Moscow), in Venezuela, of all places, just so he can petition the Uruguayan consulate – which he could do in Montevideo – to “ask for assistance to fly to Turkey or some other country to be reunited with his family.”

This simply does not pass the smell test.

Linked to by Gates of Vienna. Thank you!

————————————————
We mentioned Diyab in last night’s podcast, but we did not know of his whereabouts at the time of the podcast,

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Brazil: Still looking for the Gitmo guy

Abu Wa’el Dhiab, a.k.a. Jihad Ahmad Diyab, a.k.a. Abu Wael Dihab, a.k.a. Jihad Ahmed Mujstafa Diyab, is still missing.

The forner Gitmo detainee was released to Uruguay last year, and visited Argentina last February, where he declared he was “ready to fight“,

He had tried to enter Brazil three times but was turned away at the border.

He may have succeeded in entering Brazil through other means, but the Brazilians don’t know for sure:

Brazil Says No Sign Former Guantanamo Prisoner Is In Country.Abu Wa’el Dhiab was transferred to Uruguay in 2014 and was recently reported missing

Brazil’s security is being heightened ahead of the Summer Olympic Games set to begin in less than a month. Antiterrorism measures are being put in place, including cooperation with other nations’ intelligence agencies, said Sergio Westphalen Etchegoyen, a minister in charge of institutional security.

“An individual like this one is among our top priorities,” he said during a news conference, declining to detail what is being done to find him.

Thomas Joscelyn has more on the missing man:

The four Syrians transferred — Ahmed Adnan Ahjam, Ali Husein Shaaban, Abd al Hadi Omar Mahmoud Faraj, and Jihad Ahmed Mujstafa Diyab — were all allegedly members of the so-called “Syrian Group.” The JTF-GTMO files describe the “Syrian Group” as “comprised of dismantled terrorist cells that escaped Syrian authorities and fled to Afghanistan (AF) in 2000.”

Several South American countries are looking for the multi-named Abu/Ahmed/Ahmad.

Good luck with that.

The Olympics are four weeks away.

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