Inventory of the Baher Azmy Papers, 1986-2007 and undated

Rare Book, Manuscript, and Special Collections Library, Duke University

Azmy, Baher.

Baher Azmy Papers, 1986-2007 and undated

Material in English and German

1.8 Linear Feet

1,125 Items

Professor of law at Seton Hall University and attorney representing Guantánamo detainee Murat Kurnaz.

The Baher Azmy Papers span the years 1986-2007 and document Azmy's efforts for the writ of habeas corpus and the release and repatriation of his client Murat Kurnaz, a citizen of Turkey and permanent resident of Germany who was held in extra-judicial detention by the U.S. military at Guantánamo Bay Naval Base, Cuba. The material documents Baher Azmy's legal motions and public efforts for writ of habeas corpus and the release and repatriation of his client, Mr. Kurnaz. Legal papers are composed of filings and petitions; correspondence comprises letters from and to Baher Azmy, Murat Kurnaz, his family and friends, diplomatic officials and U.S. government offices; writings include Azmy's personal notes pertaining to the case and notes of his interviews with Murat Kurnaz; press clippings consist of media coverage regarding the Murat Kurnaz case in the U.S. and German press. Materials are chiefly in English, but there are German and Arabic items, some of which are translated.

Collection is open for research.

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[Identification of item], Baher Azmy Papers, Rare Book, Manuscript, and Special Collections Library, Duke University.

The Baher Azmy Papers were received by the Rare Book, Manuscript, and Special Collections Library as a gift in 2009.

Processed by Yektan Turkyilmaz, September 2009

Encoded by Yektan Turkyilmaz, September 2009

Accession 2009-0125 is described in this finding aid.

Descriptive sources and standards used to create this inventory: DACS, EAD, NCEAD guidelines, and local Style Guide.

This finding aid is NCEAD compliant.

The Baher Azmy Papers span the years 1986-2007, and consist of legal papers, correspondence, writings and press clippings. Materials pertain to the 2001 arrest in Pakistan of Turkish citizen and legal resident of Germany Murat Kurnaz, and his subsequent detention at the U.S. military base in Kandahar, Afghanistan and eventually at Guantánamo Bay Naval Base, Cuba. His detention was related to the Bush administration's responses to the September 11, 2001 air attacks in the U.S. He was released in 2006 and became the first former Guantánamo detainee to testify before Congress in 2008 about his experiences of detention, including military abuse and interrogation. The papers consist almost exclusively of written documents with the exception of a few printed images. The material documents Baher Azmy's legal motions and public efforts for writ of habeas corpus and the release and repatriation of his client, Mr. Kurnaz. Legal papers are composed of filings and petitions; correspondence comprises letters from and to Baher Azmy, Murat Kurnaz, his family and friends, diplomatic officials and U.S. government offices; writings include Azmy's personal notes pertaining to the case and notes of his interviews with Murat Kurnaz; press clippings consist of media coverage regarding the Murat Kurnaz case in the U.S. and German press. There are also several files concerning the religious group Jama¯at Tapli¯k (sometimes referred to as Jama'at al-Tabligh or Tablighi Jamaat). While the Baher Azmy papers contain material chiefly in English, the collection also holds German language materials, some of which are not translated into English. There is only one document written in Arabic to which an English translation is attached. Collection folders are arranged in alphabetical order by title.

These are searchable subject entries for this collection. Performing a search on these subjects in the Duke University Libraries online catalog will bring up other related research materials.