Hassan Maksum

Who was Hassan Maksum?

Several of the Uyghur captives in Guantanamo acknowledged having met or having seen, and individual named Hassan Maksum at a camp in eastern Afghanistan in mid to late 2001.

The purpose of the camp outside of Jalalabad, Afghanistan, where the Uighurs lived for months prior to the United States invasion of Afghanistan, is disputed. Many of the Uyghur captives in Guantanamo claim that the camp was simply a place for Uyghurs fleeing Chinese oppression gathered. Seema Saifee, a lawyer for four of the Uyghurs called the camp an "expatriate village in the mountains." The United States Intelligence Community considers the camp to be a terrorist training facility hosted by the Taliban and funded by Al Qaida. The camp was located in Nangarhar Province, a majority Pashtun area known for its support of the Taliban, and was surrounded by Al Qaida training camps such as the Derunta Camp.