He had been held for more than eight years without being charged (leading to Al Jazeera naming him a "forever prisoner") before he was allowed legal representation, which was successfully pleaded for by Reprieve US.

The argument for his detention was that he might have had additional information with respect to ongoing Al-Qaeda operations that could help thwart future attacks.

[12] On January 21, 2009, the day he was inaugurated, United States President Barack Obama issued three Executive orders related to the detention of individuals in Guantanamo.

When it reported back, a year later, the Joint Review Task Force classified some individuals as too dangerous to be transferred from Guantanamo, even though there was no evidence to justify laying charges against them.

[citation needed] The human rights group Reprieve has tried to make Haroon a household name, in Afghanistan, to generate public pressure for his release.