Nabil has not been the only “mistake” in our war on terror. Hundreds of other Arabs have been sent to Gitmo, chewed up by the system there, never charged and eventually transferred back to their home countries. (These transfers are carried out as secretly and as quietly as possible.) There have been no apologies, no official statements of regret, no compensation, nothing of the sort. The United States was dead wrong, but no one can admit it.

Much like the plight of the wrongly convicted in this country who are suddenly released after a decade or more of confinement, they are left high and dry, with no money, resources, or re-entry tools. What will befall Nabil if he's released?

[Nabil's] nightmare will only continue. He will be homeless. He will have no support to reintegrate him into a society where many will be hostile to a former Gitmo detainee, either on the assumption that he is an extremist or because he refuses to join the extremist opposition to the Algerian government. Instead of showing some guts and admitting they were wrong, the American authorities will whisk him away, dump him on the streets of Algiers and wash their hands.

Grisham tries to come up with a solution:

First, admit the mistake and make the apology. Second, provide compensation. United States taxpayers have spent $2 million a year for 11 years to keep Nabil at Gitmo; give the guy a few thousand bucks to get on his feet. Third, pressure the French to allow his re-entry.

I'd go a bit further:

• First off, they ought to get a few thousand for every month they spent at Gitmo.
• Second, they should be be allowed to return to the country of their choice. If it's not their home country, the U.S. should also pay for their families to relocate to the chosen country, so they can be together. The third country must agree in writing it will not interfere with the detainee's liberty. If the detainee's preferred country won't take him and his family under these conditions, the U.S. should start withholding aid dollars for each month it refuses.
• Third, each detainee who is not charged with a crime and allowed to leave should be given a certificate, signed by President Obama, which contains a formal apology and confirmation that the allegations of misconduct against the detainees were not substantiated.

Of course, none of this will happen, except perhaps in John Grisham's next novel.