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MasterShake69 -> RE: My gift to Coldwarrior57 (2/6/2009 1:07:35 AM)
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http://www.newsweek.com/id/141513
No Country for 270 Men By Michael Isikoff | NEWSWEEK From the magazine issue dated Jun 23, 2008
White House and Justice Department lawyers are bracing for a flood of new court battles as a result of last week's historic Supreme Court ruling, which granted Guantánamo Bay detainees the right to seek their freedom in federal court. But a more daunting problem lurks down the road: what happens if the courts actually do set them free? The largest block of Gitmo prisoners—nearly 100 of the remaining 270—hail from Yemen, a country that so far has resisted taking back detainees because of U.S. demands that they be put on trial back home (or, at least, that the Yemenis pledge to keep a close eye on them). "Of course, we want our citizens back," says Abdulwahab al-Hajjri, Yemen's ambassador to the United States. "But [the United States] has these conditions, so this is taking time." Other prisoners come from countries that allegedly engage in torture, such as Syria, Libya and China. Attempts to find countries in Europe willing to take them have hit a brick wall. "The most vexing problem," says one senior administration official, who asked not to be identified discussing diplomatic matters, "is nobody wants them." One example is Suleman Al Nahdi, a Yemeni who's been in Gitmo for more than six years. In 2004, a special military tribunal declared him an "enemy combatant" and "a member of or affiliated with Al Qaeda"—a conclusion based on classified evidence that Al Nahdi never saw. (Last week's court ruling found such hearings unconstitutional.) Earlier this year, though, the U.S. military changed its mind, telling Al Nahdi he was "cleared for release." His current lawyer, Rick Murphy, says Al Nahdi was thrilled when he got the news in February. But he still hasn't been let go and is now so disenchanted he refuses to meet with his attorneys. The Bush administration is especially apprehensive about returning detainees to Yemen because of a massive jailbreak two years ago in which 13 Qaeda operatives escaped, including Jamal al-Badawi, who was indicted for the USS Cole bombing. FBI officials suspect that the jailbreak was an inside job and have demanded with no success that al-Badawi be returned to the United States. "People escape from prison all over the world," says al-Hajjri, Yemen's ambassador. "It happens."
http://au.news.yahoo.com/a/-/newshome/5270301
Pair admits guilt over 9/11 attacks January 20, 2009, 2:01 pm
Two alleged orchestrators of the September 11 attacks have casually declared their guilt in a messy and perhaps final session of the Guantanamo war crimes court. This week's military hearings could be the last at Guantanamo Bay. US president-elect Barack Obama has said he will close the offshore prison and many expect him to suspend the military tribunals and order new trials in the United States. Ramzi Binalshibh and Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, the self-proclaimed architect of the 2001 terrorist attacks, were unapologetic about their roles during a series of outbursts on Monday as translators struggled to keep up and the judge repeatedly sought to regain control. "We did what we did; we're proud of September 11," announced Binalshibh, who has said he wants to plead guilty to charges that could see him sentenced to death. The judge must first determine if he is mentally competent to stand trial. Mohammed shrugged off the potential death sentence for the murder of nearly 3,000 people in the attacks. "We don't care about capital punishment," said Mohammed, whose thick grey beard flows to the top of his white prison jumpsuit. "We are doing jihad for the cause of God."
http://blogs.abcnews.com/politicalpunch/2009/02/president-oba-2.html
Military Commission Charges Dropped Against Terrorist Suspect Al-Nashiri February 05, 2009 5:46 PM As President Obama prepared to order the Department of Defense's Military Commission to withdraw charges against terrorist suspect Abd al-Rahim al-Nashiri on Friday afternoon, the convening authority for the Commission, Susan Crawford, withdrew the charges on her own Thursday night. The charges were withdrawn without prejudice, meaning they later can be reinstated in a military commission or pursued in a civilian court. Al-Nashiri will remain in custody. The original plan was for the announcement not to be made until after President Obama meets with the families of victims of terrorist attacks on 9/11 and on the U.S.S. Cole Friday afternoon, where he will assure them that this step was not done to be lenient towards al-Nashiri.
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