From Guantanamo to Palestine: MEMO in Conversation with Anas Mustapha

Middle East Monitor Conversations

20 years ago, CAGE UK was set up to advocate for detainees held unjustly in Guantanamo Bay. Now, the rights group is expanding and becoming global at a time when systemic injustices are prevalent, seen especially in the repression of pro-Palestine activism.

In this week's conversation, MEMO speaks with CAGE about the organisation's 20-year long journey from advocating for Guantanamo Bay detainees to tackling systemic injustices like the criminalisation of pro-Palestine solidarity. We discuss trends of repression via counter-terrorism laws, how inflated terrorism rhetoric compounds discrimination, the thinking behind CAGE International and its latest report on the crackdown on pro-Palestine solidarity in light of events in Gaza.

Anas Mustapha is the head of Public Advocacy at CAGE UK, guiding media strategy and pioneering high-impact research and reports. He is a speaker and advocate against the abuse of state power, specialising across the breadth of UK Counter Terrorism. Anas holds a degree in English language, is a native Arabic speaker and a student of Islamic sciences.