The ‘American Taliban’ will leave prison after 17 years – some are concerned about what he will do now.
John Walker Lindh and hundreds more have been sent to prison for terrorism, treason and other crimes. The release of the « American Taliban », scheduled for Thursday, shows how little the US has done to prepare for the moment they are set free.
The American-born Lindh was captured on the battlefield during the US invasion of Afghanistan in the months after the 9/11 terror attacks. He pleaded guilty in 2002 to aiding the Taliban and was sentenced to 20 years in prison.
Back then he was vilified as a traitor. This week, though, he will leave prison.
Lindh, 38, will be put on probation. He will not be allowed to go online unless he has special permission, and he cannot travel freely.
Lindh became an Irish citizen while he was in prison (his grandmother was born in Donegal) and could move to Ireland when the travel restrictions are lifted.
Upon his release from prison, he will discover a world that has changed dramatically since his incarceration. He will have to grapple with daily life, learning how to use a mobile phone, for example.
And he will face a society that has done little to prepare for his arrival.
Many experts, including the Federation of American Scientists’ Steven Aftergood, who specialises in national security, says the US should do more to help.
« In the justice system, we say ‘You, the criminal, are not like us’. But there is also a responsibility for society to say at the end ‘There is a place for you in our world’. We’ve very bad at that. »In bad company
Lindh is not the only one to rejoin society after a lengthy incarceration for crimes that threaten national security – and to face the daunting prospect of life on the outside.
More than 300 people in the US have been convicted of jihadist terrorism-related charges since 2001, according to New America Foundation, a think-tank based in Washington.
In addition, dozens of individuals are behind bars for assassination attempts, selling secrets to the Chinese government and other crimes that threaten national security.
