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[Identification of item], Baher Azmy Papers, David M. Rubenstein Rare Book & Manuscript Library, Duke University
The Baher Azmy Papers were received by the David M. Rubenstein Rare Book & Manuscript 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:
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, and electronic files of legal documents, notes, media releases, and correspondence. 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 within each box.
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.
Baher Azmy is an Egyptian-American lawyer and Professor of Law at Seton Hall University Law School Center for Social Justice, specializing in constitutional law. Azmy gained his law degree from the University of Pennsylvania. Aside from his academic pursuits, he takes
Electronic files of legal documents, correspondence, research notes, publicity and media documents, memos from U.S. and German officials, and other material pertaining to Azmy's defense of Murat Kurnaz.
[Files are located on the library server. For access to these materials, please consult with a reference archivist.]