Perkins Coie Pro Bono Client Ihlkham Battayav Released from Guantanamo

PORTLAND, ORE. (December 18, 2006) – Perkins Coie is pleased to announce that pro bono client, Guantanamo detainee Ihlkham Battayav, has been released to his native Kazakhstan and reunited with his family.

Battayav had been held as an enemy combatant since January 2002. He was one of 18 detainees transferred or released from the prison located on the U.S. Naval base in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. This brings the total to 114 detainees that have left Guantanamo this year.

"Naturally, we are delighted that our client has been released and allowed to return home without further incarceration," said Paul Fortino, a lead partner on the matter. "His parents, wife and three young children have waited five years for his return."

The Perkins Coie team of Fortino, Tom Johnson and Cody Weston began representing Battayav, pro bono, in late 2004. The team made five trips to Guantanamo, numerous trips to the Kazakh embassy in Washington, D.C., and a trip to Kazakhstan to meet with his family, the Kazakh press and potential witnesses.