Guantanamo’s longest-serving prisoner has been freed after nearly two decades in detention without charge.

Saifullah Paracha, 75, was transferred to the detention center in 2004 after his capture in an FBI operation in Thailand. Paracha, who was 56 at the time, was accused of meeting with Osama bin Laden and helping the 9/11 orchestrators “facilitate financial transactions and propaganda.”

The Pakistani national, who was never charged with a crime but was deemed too dangerous to be released, has since been repatriated, the Pakistani government said in a statement.

“The Ministry of Foreign Affairs completed an extensive inter-institutional process to facilitate the repatriation of Paracha. We are glad that a Pakistani citizen detained abroad is finally reunited with his family,” the statement read.

At the time of his capture, Paracha was a legal resident of the United States. He lived in the New York borough of Queens and ran several businesses, including real estate, travel agencies and a media company, the New York Times reported.

Paracha, who obtained permanent residency from him in 1980, denies any involvement in the 9/11 attacks and his affiliation with Al Qaeda.

During the undercover operation, Paracha was duped by officials posing as Kmart representatives, who told him they needed to meet with him in Bangkok, Thailand to discuss a deal. In July 2003, he was captured by FBI agents at the airport.

(Taken from Independent in Spanish)

The “top 100” list includes sites spread across 56 countries. Its publication begins an effort to designate geological sites around the world that are iconic and recognized by the entire geoscientific community by virtue of their impact on the understanding of the planet and its history.

The IUGS Executive Committee has endorsed these 100 sites as “the first and inspiring steps towards a broader program that will recognize those geosites with the highest scientific importance in the world.”

In the certificate of the International Union of Geological Sciences that includes the terraces of Maisí in the list of The First 100 Geological Heritage Sites of the IUGS, it is read that:

“An IUGS Geological Heritage Site is a key location with geological features and/or processes of international scientific relevance, used as a reference, and/or with a substantial contribution to the development of geological sciences throughout history.”

More than 200 specialists from almost 40 nations and 10 international organizations, representing different disciplines of Earth sciences, have participated in the selection.

As part of the process, 181 candidate sites in 56 countries were proposed, then evaluated by 33 international experts who defined the IUGS Top 100 Geological Heritage Sites list.

On the IUGS website, the Maisí terraces are presented as “one of the best preserved sequences of elevated marine and coral terraces in the world due to the interaction of the global sea level and tectonics.”

It is considered that they are “an important source of information to reveal the tectonics of the Greater Antilles within the Caribbean geological domain during the Quaternary period (…) The marine terraces in Cuba can be correlated with global changes in sea level in the Quaternary.

“In addition to being in an area regularly hit by hurricanes, this area is important for studying wave energy during those weather events.”

The Maisí terraces share space on the world list with iconic places such as the Grand Canyon or the Yellowstone volcanic and hydrothermal system (USA), the Perito Moreno glacier (Argentina), the Iguazú falls (Argentina-Brazil), Torres del Paine (Chile), the caldera of Santorini (Greece), the inselberg or mount island Mount Uluru (Australia), the sea of ​​sand in the Namib desert (Namibia), the Victoria Falls (Zambia-Zimbabwe) or the Shilin Stone Forest (China).

There are also sites with some of the oldest rocks on Earth (South Africa), traces of primitive life from Australia and China, some of the best dinosaur fossil remains from Canada, the earliest evidence of early hominin development from Tanzania and the sea rocks of the top of the world (Mount Everest).

IUGS Top 100 Geological Heritage Sites List:

Interglacial coralline and raised marine terraces of the Quaternary of Maisí

Geological period:

Quaternary

Main geological interest:

Geomorphology and active geological processes

Stratigraphy and sedimentology

Location:

Punta de Maisi, Guantanamo province, Cuba

20° 08′ 10” N, 074° 13′ 59” W

In a note signed by the Geology Directorate of the Ministry of Energy and Mines and the Institute of Geology and Paleontology of Cuba, it is highlighted that “the recognition of the IUGS gives visibility to these sites, identifies them as of maximum scientific value.

“These are sites that served to develop the science of geology, especially its early history. They are the world’s best demonstrations of geological features and processes. They are the places of fabulous discoveries of the Earth and its history”.

It is also recalled that the scientific community has long called for the establishment of a world program with global standards for the recognition of sites of great international importance.

“The IUGS Geological Heritage Sites project, approved by IUGS and UNESCO, has created the right conditions for collaboration towards this great milestone, which will inspire the work of this ambitious program in the near future.”

They also point out that many of the “top 100″ are well protected in national parks, geoparks, geosites and nature reserves, “but many are not.”

They add that “recognition and visibility of the IUGS Top 100 Geological Heritage Sites can lead to their increased appreciation, their use as educational resources and, most importantly, their preservation.”

On the left, shaded relief superimposed on a satellite image showing the terraces. On the right, topographic profile showing the inner edge of each terrace level in the Maisí area. Image: IUGS.

Currently, Maisí is a protected natural area. In the future, considering its internationally recognized geological value, it could become a geopark, as part of a process that began in 2021 with the Viñales Geopark.

According to specialists, due to its remarkable geological diversity, there is potential in Cuba for the creation of around 20 geoparks.

According to reports from the Minem Geology Directorate, in the first quarter of 2023 the geological-morphological study will be completed to assess the creation of a geopark in La Gran Piedra (Santiago de Cuba). Likewise, next year a similar study will begin in the Sierra de Cubitas (Camagüey).

Another study, with a start date in the last quarter of 2022, will have the same objective in the Guamuhaya massif, in the center of the Island.

The International Union of Geological Sciences is one of the largest scientific organizations in the world, with 121 national members, including Cuba, bringing together more than a million geoscientists.

Some information about the terraces of Maisí:

-The marine and coral terraces are formed by coral limestones with abundant fossil remains, ranging from the Upper Pleistocene Jaimanitas formation (marine isotope stage 5e, 122 ± 6,000 years. In short: about 122,000 years) and older units within the Pleistocene.

-Some 28 levels of terraces are observed, with an elevation of up to 560 m.

-Most of the terraces are very well preserved. Fossil tidal niches, caverns, and other karst features are found. These represent approximately two million years’ worth of sea level fluctuations.

-The zone is tectonically linked to the Oriente transform fault zone in eastern Cuba, which is the boundary between the North American and Caribbean plates, where block uplifts of 0.33 mm/year are recorded.

-Geomorphologically, the area is a large ring about 75 km long that covers the eastern coastal zone of Cuba like a ladder that is narrow to the north and south, and wider in the eastern corner. The steps are cut by rivers that form gorges with large transverse outcrops. Due to tilting and folding, the same step changes altitude along the coast. The lower terrace has blocks overturned from the sea by hurricanes and features of landslides such as crowns are observed.

-This area of ​​Maisí, like other marine terraces on the coast of Cuba, is part of an international collaboration research project between the Institute of Geology and Paleontology (IGP) of Cuba and several French universities. Researchers take coral samples and carry out measurements in the field and analyzes in laboratories to determine in greater detail how and when the marine terraces of the archipelago formed.

(By: Deny Extremera San Martin/Cubadebate)

Being 1:46 a.m. there were not a few inhabitants who jumped out of bed, or those who were frightened in the midst of the darkness in which many lived in silence due to the scheduled blackout.

The epicenter of the tremor was located 40 kilometers southwest of Caimanera, at a depth of 21 kilometers.

This is the fifth perceptible earthquake of the year 2022 in Cuba. The earthquake preceding this last one, which was reported by the population, dates from June 28, with a magnitude of 4.0 on the Richter scale and located in the same area of ​​the Oriente fault.

According to statements by Doctor of Science Enrique Arango Arias, from the National Center for Seismological Research, “a strict and permanent surveillance is maintained over the southeastern region of the country, thanks to the network of seismological stations of the National Service in real time.”

(With information from Venceremos on their Telegram channel)

This was noted by historian José Sánchez Guerra, during the “Theoretical Encounter: 120 Years of the Yankee Military Presence in Guantánamo,” held at the University of Medical Sciences of this territory; as part of which professors, social science researchers and university students discussed the damages caused as a result of the United States’ oldest overseas military base.

Sánchez added that Guantánamo residents have responded with a spirit of resistance accumulated over 120 years, which forms part of their identity.

The event saw the book launch of Guantánamo and American Empire: The Humanities Respond by its author, U.S. writer and professor Don. E. Walicek, who currently lives in Puerto Rico, and the editor Jessica Adams.

The text contains historiographical elements, interviews and academic essays that, from a Caribbean humanistic and cultural perspective, condemn the arbitrary methods of detention and torture employed at the prison located in the illegal military base.

Don. E. Walicek explained that the book is the result of four years of research, and also attempts to show the world that the province of Guantánamo is much more than just the naval base. At the same time, it highlights the international condemnation of the illegal occupation, as well as the just demand of the Cuban people for its return to the island.

Researcher Mario Montero Campello, meanwhile, referred to the impact of the military base on the surrounding environment. The United States occupies the deepest areas of the Bay of Caimanera, affecting also the flora and fauna of the area, as a result of continuous constructive extensions, and the systematic dumping of waste, which pollutes the surrounding area.

(Granma)

With various initiatives that include mobilizations, messages in alternative and, where possible, more traditional media outlets, concerts and other cultural activities, activists will seek to call public attention to the issue, especially in the United States.

One of the actions will be to use Twitter to share clear messages under the hashtags: #ReturnGuantanamotoCubaNow; #USOutofGuanatamo; #EEUUFueradeGuantanamo; #DevuelvanGuantanamoaCubaYa!; including tagging the twitter account of President Donald Trump @POTUS.

This forms part of the agreements taken at the conference organized by the Coalition Against U.S. Foreign Military Bases, held at the University of Baltimore in the U.S. state of Maryland, January 12-14, which addressed the need to close U.S. military bases located throughout the world.

The final resolution on the Guantánamo Naval Base concludes: “the Coalition Against U.S. Foreign Bases unanimously calls upon the global peace movement to organize, on or around February 23, 2018, Actions calling for the United States to promptly withdraw all its forces and personnel from Guantánamo Bay and immediately declare ALL agreements ceding Cuban control of Guantánamo Bay to the U.S. to be null and void.”

The Cuban chapter of the International Committee for Peace, Justice and the Dignity published its January 27 bulletin, in Spanish and English, on these issues, which already has the support of valuable intellectuals and artists, among whom is Argentine Nobel Peace laureate Adolfo Pérez Esquivel.

The Committee also asked other organizations around the world to screen the documentary All Guantánamo is Ours, by filmmaker Hernando Calvo Ospina, which has been translated into numerous languages, to serve to spark a debate.

The audiovisual material explains how the Guantánamo Naval Base is a permanent source of threat, provocation and a violation of Cuban national sovereignty.

The activities will continue throughout the year as outlined on the Coalition website: www.NoForeignBases.org; with important events scheduled for April 14 and 15, to commemorate Earth Day (April 22), and May Day.

The U.S. has 860 military bases in 144 countries around the world. These facilities were created under the pretext of guaranteeing security in the face of armed groups, and to combat drug and human trafficking.

In fact, they have been very effective in quelling attempts at social change in countries that distance themselves from capitalism and the interests of the White House. Today our peoples need a change in the political and hegemonic vision of the United States to achieve higher rates of human development. As long as investments are made for war and not peace, we face the imminent danger of having the means to make the planet earth disappear in seconds.

(Granma)

The state has provided families with 18 zinc roofing panels, 20 bags of cement, a sink, cables and screws for those living in areas with electricity; while beneficiaries themselves are responsible for obtaining wood, sourced primarily from palm trees and others brought down by the storm.

Two-thousand families are set to benefit from the initiative in the first stage, thus helping to speed up efforts to repair the 8,413 homes totally destroyed by the storm.

The remaining 6,413 dwellings will be rebuilt through a specially designed state construction plan and owners themselves, reported Carlos Martínez Turro, vice president of the Provincial Administrative Council.

Of the over 42,000 homes in the province damaged by the hurricane, recovery efforts have been focused on those which suffered partial or total damage to their roofs, as well as to part of their structure, given that they are quicker and easier to repair as fewer resources are required.

As part of this strategy, all homes which fall into the first two categories are set to be fully repaired by this coming May. Meanwhile, all homes which suffered such damages in the municipalities of Yateras, San Antonio del Sur and Imías have now been restored, stated the vice president.

(Granma)

The Trabajadores websitenoted that Díaz-Canel was accompanied by deputy minister of the Revolutionary Armed Forces and Political Bureau member, Army Corps General Ra­món Espinosa Martín, as ministers and deputy ministers of different sectors of the economy provided an up-date on progress being made in recovery efforts.

According to the report, despite the millions of pesos worth of damage caused by the hurricane, the recovery stage is advancing with the aim of repairing and improving the quality of homes, state facilities, productive areas, and services.

Díaz-Canel highlighted the country’s swift response to the disaster, sending thousands of workers from different sectors; as well as food, information-communication technologies, equipment, construction materials and other essential resources for the population, to the affected areas.

In Maisí, Cuba’s first vice president visited mini-industries dedicated to the local production of construction materials, and the site where a new neighborhood will be built, in collaboration with the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela’s Petro­casas initiative. Meanwhile in Baracoa, Díaz-Canel visited the area where Matthew destroyed the bridge over the River Toa, one of the country’s largest rivers.

Radio Baracoa reported that the Cuban official inquired about the alternative overpass being built alongside the former bridge, which will facilitate overland communication with the mining municipality of Moa.

Díaz-Canel also held a fraternal encounter at Baracoa’s Gustavo Rizo airport with renowned visual artist Alexis Leyva Machado (Kcho), who updated the Cuban official on actions he is undertaking to contribute to recovery efforts.

Dr. Noralis Palomo Díaz, president of the province’s José Martí Cultural Society, spoke about the anti-imperialist legacy of Cuba’s National Hero, Fidel Castro and the Cuban people; while Guantánamo City Historian, José Sánchez Guerra with a Sciences Masters degree, described the dire state of Caimanera before the triumph of the Revolution.

He recalled that up until January 1, 1959, there were practically no doctors, schools or jobs in the town, which was instead full of brothels and the streets were ruled by the U.S. marines, who did as they liked, protected by local authorities and a series of submissive governments. This was the “well-being” that the empire offered residents of Caimanera, he noted.

Elementary school children from the municipality and across the entire island demand the U.S. government lift the blockade and return the territory illegally occupied by the Naval Base in Guantánamo, stated Linka Dailiana Matos Pupo, seventh grade student at the town’s Pavel Rojo High School, during her speech. Meanwhile, Dr. Humberto Hodelín Mainart highlighted the work of the Revolution in the healthcare sector and the example of Cuban doctors renowned for their altruistic collaboration efforts worldwide. In contrast, he highlighted how the U.S. government undertakes numerous actions, such as the Parole program, which attempt to encourage Cuban medical professionals to abandon their missions in other countries.

Obama called on us to forget the past, which is the same as asking us to betray our principles and homeland, stated Orestes Yánez Mestre, national CDR deputy coordinator, who also reported that neighborhood debates will be held in country’s over 18,000 CDR zones.

He stressed that today, imperialism is changing its methods but not its objective to destroy the Revolution, thus we must think of Martí when he said that if the war we are undertaking is one of thought then we must prepare ourselves to win it by thought; also citing Che, when he said that imperialism can not be trusted, not even one iota.

Zones undertaking outstanding work in the formation of values were recognized at end of the neighborhood debate, held in José Martí Park.

(Granma)

During the welcome ceremony, Milagro Rodríguez, counselor of the Venezuelan Embassy in Cuba, speaking on behalf of President Nicolás Maduro, noted the affection and fraternity expressed through 327 tons of equipment and various materials that will contribute to restoring damaged areas.

She thanked ship Captain Leonardo Castellanos, and stressed that no natural event or otherwise would destroy the ties of solidarity between the Cuban and Venezuelan peoples.

(Granma)

Solidarity is arriving in areas hit hard by Hurricane Matthew, with recovery efforts beginning without delay. There is much to do, and willpower is not lacking. Photo gallery features scenes along the highway between Imias and Maisí, in Guantánamo province, where the category 4 hurricane made landfall October 4.

(Granma)