antonio aiello

Writer. Editor. Storyteller. @sundanceorg Fellow ▪️Don’t Forget Us Here: Lost and Found at Guantánamo | Hachette ▪️Letters from Guantánamo | Audible Original

[Mansoor Adayfi 441 منصور الضيفي @MansoorAdayfi]

#LettersFromGuantánamo, an @audible Original. In which @MansoorAdayfi writes to the Pope.

Listen at: https://t.co/FkmogO8ZkH

[antonio aiello @ar_aiello]

Special thanks to @AyshaChoudhary and @audible_com for taking this project on and to Heather Tesoriero for seeing it through.

Listen at https://t.co/v7DhhGZW94

[antonio aiello @ar_aiello]

Five years ago, I met the amazing @MansoorAdayfi, who'd been imprisoned at #Guantánamo for 14+ years. We’ve become good friends working together on his stories.



I’m proud to announce that LETTERS FROM GUANTÁNAMO, an @audible_com Original, is out today.

[antonio aiello @ar_aiello]

It’s important to understand that all but 11 men were never charged with crimes. These men weren’t detained, they were imprisoned, often tortured, and punished without having the opportunity to defend themselves. This project is meant to remind us what happened.

[antonio aiello @ar_aiello]

@ninawyo @gibbsne @PantheonBooks @likaluca @Kfauss Wonderful news! Congratulations!

[antonio aiello @ar_aiello]

A little more than five years ago, I started working with @MansoorAdayfi to help tell his story and the story of #Guantánamo. Here's to a new project, a new audience, and to helping more people understand who was really held at Guantanamo and what they endured.

[Mansoor Adayfi 441 منصور الضيفي @MansoorAdayfi]

الحمد لله من قبل ومن بعد .
📢 ANNOUNCEMENT!
#LettersFromGuantánamo

I feel happiness intertwined with sadness but also proud to announce
LETTERS FROM #GUANTÁNAMO, an @audible_com Original, is out today. Collaborated with my friend Antonio Aiello @ar_aiello to bring this project to life.

For years, all we had to write with were the occasional nubby pens and government issued paper. When I had the chance, I wrote to outside world knowing what I wrote would be read by interrogators, camp officials, and CIA analysts. This was the point. I wrote to Pope John Paull II, space aliens, the Defense Technology Corporation, President Obama, Men’s Health Journal, the Founding Fathers, Martin Luther King, Jr., Donald Trump, and so many others. Of course, those letters were never delivered and I didn’t see most of them ever again. But these letters created a unique framework to tell real true stories from Guantánamo in a new way.

Of the 779 men held at Guantanamo over the past 22 years, only 11 have ever been charged in military commissions and only 1 convicted. Nine men died at Guantanamo. 730 have been released. Of the 30 remaining prisoners, 16 have been approved for release, several more than 10 years ago. Three men are held in indefinite law-of-war detention.

These figures can’t be repeated enough after more than 22 years of misinformation and outright lies for political gain and to avoid accountability.

It’s important to understand that all but 11 men were never charged with crimes. These men weren’t detained, they were imprisoned, often tortured, and punished without ever having the opportunity to defend themselves. This project is meant to remind the world what happened.

Special thanks to my sister KhadijahUm-Nurha for her support, to my lawyer aunt Beth Jacob, to @PradhanAlka , @AyshaChoudhary for taking this project on, to Heather Tesoriero for seeing it through, and to you all for your help and support.

Thank you @CAGEintl team for your support.

Listen to #Guantánamo here: 👇🏽
https://t.co/zPI8djjBoW

[antonio aiello @ar_aiello]

Love seeing this!!

[Mansoor Adayfi 441 منصور الضيفي @MansoorAdayfi]

I Spent around 15 years at #Guantánamo, where the sea was a constant presence. Could smell it, hear it, and even managed to see it a few times. Our bond with the sea began the moment we arrived, offering comfort and reassurance. #SeaConnection

🌅 The sea was our first and enduring friend, assuring us that everything would be fine. We sang for the sea, wrote poems about our steadfast companion, and painted it and its beautiful waves in our minds and in our artwork. The sea became a symbol of hope,resilience and resistance #FriendshipWithTheSea

🎨 Today, a lovely friend took me to the sea in #Wexford #Ireland. The moment my eyes caught sight of it, my heart raced, and tears welled up. I opened the car door, rushing to embrace and meet my dear friend, the Sea. #Reunion #EmotionalJourney

🌊 Seeing and meeting the sea felt like finding a missing piece of myself. In that vast expanse of blue, I rediscovered parts of who I am. The sea, my eternal friend, a source of solace and understanding and resistance. #SeaConnection #SoulfulReunion

💙 Love is an understatement for what I feel for my friend, the sea. It's a profound connection that goes beyond words. Grateful for the moments of peace and reflection it has offered throughout my journey. #LoveForTheSea #Gratitude

🌊 The sea, a witness to our struggles and triumphs, holds a special place in my heart. It's more than just water and waves; it's a part of my identity. Here's to the enduring friendship with the sea, a bond that sustained me through the years. #SeaStory #ForeverGrateful
My article about the sea 2017
https://t.co/75i2cCfoFN
@ClareDalyMEP
@wallacemick

[Mansoor Adayfi 441 منصور الضيفي @MansoorAdayfi]

I Spent around 15 years at #Guantánamo, where the sea was a constant presence. Could smell it, hear it, and even managed to see it a few times. Our bond with the sea began the moment we arrived, offering comfort and reassurance. #SeaConnection

🌅 The sea was our first and enduring friend, assuring us that everything would be fine. We sang for the sea, wrote poems about our steadfast companion, and painted it and its beautiful waves in our minds and in our artwork. The sea became a symbol of hope,resilience and resistance #FriendshipWithTheSea

🎨 Today, a lovely friend took me to the sea in #Wexford #Ireland. The moment my eyes caught sight of it, my heart raced, and tears welled up. I opened the car door, rushing to embrace and meet my dear friend, the Sea. #Reunion #EmotionalJourney

🌊 Seeing and meeting the sea felt like finding a missing piece of myself. In that vast expanse of blue, I rediscovered parts of who I am. The sea, my eternal friend, a source of solace and understanding and resistance. #SeaConnection #SoulfulReunion

💙 Love is an understatement for what I feel for my friend, the sea. It's a profound connection that goes beyond words. Grateful for the moments of peace and reflection it has offered throughout my journey. #LoveForTheSea #Gratitude

🌊 The sea, a witness to our struggles and triumphs, holds a special place in my heart. It's more than just water and waves; it's a part of my identity. Here's to the enduring friendship with the sea, a bond that sustained me through the years. #SeaStory #ForeverGrateful
My article about the sea 2017
https://t.co/75i2cCfoFN
@ClareDalyMEP
@wallacemick

[Amnesty International USA @amnestyusa]

👀 Happening at 12pm ET! We're hosting a Twitter Space with @MansoorAdayfi, @deviatar, @AlliMcCracken to talk about Mansoor's experience as a detainee at Guantánamo, those still imprisoned, and the urgency of @POTUS to close the prison now. Join us!
https://t.co/4kreJXalvZ

[Mick Wallace @wallacemick]

Just read the amazing story of @MansoorAdayfi, an innocent man from #Yemen who was sold to #US when 18, before spending 14 years at #Guantánamo where he was brutally tortured for years. A story of how badly Human Beings can behave - A story of how powerful is the Human Spirit....

[antonio aiello @ar_aiello]

@MansoorAdayfi never ceases to amaze me. 21 years after he was sent to #Guantanamo, he writes the most poetic thread about memory, pain, art, and reconciliation. There's so much more to come.

[Mansoor Adayfi 441 منصور الضيفي @MansoorAdayfi]

Thread 🧵 1
21 years ago today, I was sent to #Guantanamo gagged, hooded & shackled to the floor of a military plane. I remember the heaviness of the heat, the salty smell of the sea & the ISN they gave me as my name: 0441. I was 19 years old.

[antonio aiello @ar_aiello]

. @POTUS, Today, January 11, 2023, is the 21st anniversary of the opening of the prison at Guantánamo Bay, and, marking 7,671 days since the prison opened. It's time to #CloseGuantanamo.

[Andy Worthington @GuantanamoAndy]

Marking 7,671 days of #Guantanamo's existence today (the 21st anniversary of its opening), former prisoners Mansoor Adayfi & Mohamedou Ould Slahi urge President Biden to close it without further delay. Please join them! https://t.co/fTMVPEbM4z

[Mansoor Adayfi 441 منصور الضيفي @MansoorAdayfi]

Thread 🧵 1
#Guantanamo prison turns 21 today. Over 21 years, it's held 779 Muslim men & grown from a makeshift, chainlink camp into a sprawling, concrete & steel facility costing $540 million a year. Please, read here ⬇️
https://t.co/HZOQNnyK5E

[antonio aiello @ar_aiello]

Join @MansoorAdayfi & me Monday 11-7 for a conversation about #Guantanamo & #DontForgetUsHere w/ @BayoumiMoustafa. Specail thx to @Wolfe_Institute, Brooklyn College, and Ana D for putting this together. Register here: https://t.co/w3PVNnY8XW

@HachetteUS @JanklowNesbit