Parroting squawkbox Pundits |
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CAGE (formerly Cageprisoners) is a human rights organization based in London, emphasizing the rights of Guantanamo Bay prisoners. Its director is Moazzam Begg, himself a former Gitmo detainee, and it has ties to suspicious Islamist nuts. Remember, kids: just because someone claims to have had his human rights violated doesn't mean he's a nice person. Suspected terrorists, prisoners, those with unpopular opinions or unusual lifestyles, and others on the fringes of society have human rights too.[1][2]
CAGE has ties to Amnesty International. Gita Sahgal, head of Amnesty's gender unit, criticized the organisation for teaming up with Begg: "To be appearing on platforms with Britain's most famous supporter of the Taliban, whom we treat as a human rights defender, is a gross error of judgment", she said. Amnesty International, appalled at the notion that support for the Taliban is in any way unacceptable for human rights advocates, promptly suspended her.[3]
One of the more peculiar pages on the CAGE website is an article dated 15 May 2021 entitled "Breaking News: Barack Obama Dead". The article is a fictional account of "American War Criminal Barack Obama" being killed in circumstances similar to Osama bin Laden, complete with a photoshopped picture of Obama's bloody body based on the fake photo of Osama that circulated after his death; it concludes that "All events are purely fictional – but you knew that already, didn’t you?"[4]
Begg and CAGE have campaigned for the release of Shaker Aamer, Guantanamo's one remaining British detainee.[5][6] A U.S. Department of Defense memorandum released by Wikileaks reveals that Begg spoke out against Aamer while detained, identifying him as an al-Qaeda recruiter who fought under Abu Zubayr al-Haili, a senior figure in the terrorist organisation.[6]