QuoteGUANTANAMO BAY ISSUES
The FBI is working directly with the Department of Defense on issues surrounding the recent arrests of translator, Senior Airman Ahmad I. al-Halabi on July 23, 2003 in Jacksonville, Florida; chaplain, Captain James J. Yee on September 10, 2003; and translator, Ahmed Fathy Mehalba on September 29, 2003. The FBI considers these matters potentially serious breaches of national security and will continue to work jointly with the Department of Defense in order to successfully resolve these matters and limit the damage they may have caused.
The FBI is also working with both the Department of Defense and the Federal Bureau of Prisons to assess the mechanisms by which chaplains and translators are vetted for employment. In addition, the FBI is evaluating the protocols for ongoing security assessments of such employees during sensitive assignments, such as more frequent polygraph examinations.