Results tagged “guantanamobay”

One of the confessed masterminds behind the 9/11 attacks, along with four other killers, may be flown from Guantanamo Bay to face death penalty trials in the Big Apple. Yes, we're talking about ex-Al Qaeda "military commander" Khalid Shaikh Mohammed—who admitted last year to being a terrorist "to the bone", said he wished to be a martyr and even played critic to a courtroom sketch artist's drawing of him.

Ahmed Khalfan Ghailani, who was being held in Guantanamo Bay and is accused of two 1998 bombings in Africa, is now in NYC for trial. U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder said, "With his appearance in federal court today, Ahmed Ghailani is being held accountable for his alleged role in the bombing of U.S. Embassies in Tanzania and Kenya and the murder of 224 people." Ghailani is the first Gitmo detainee to be sent to the U.S. for trial; one of his lawyers says that Ghailani wants to keep his Pentagon-appointed defense team. Marine Col. Jeffrey Colwell, who is one of two attorneys traveling to NYC to see if they can stay on the case, told the AP, "First and foremost is what he wants. We've got a good working relationship." In a 2007 closed hearing, Ghailani said he didn't realize that he had delivered explosives used in the Tanzanian bombing, "It was without my knowledge what they were doing, but I helped them."

The Justice Department announced today that Ahmed Khalfan Ghailani, who has been held in Guantanamo Bay and is accused of 1998 bombings in Africa, will be tried in NY. Attorney General Eric Holder said, "By prosecuting Ahmed Ghailani in federal court, we will ensure that he finally answers for his alleged role in the bombing of our embassies in Tanzania and Kenya. This administration is committed to keeping the American people safe and upholding the rule of law, and by closing Guantanamo and bringing terrorists housed there to justice we will make our nation stronger and safer," Ghailani, who is Tanzanian, was previously indicted in New York in 1998 for conspiring with Osama bin Laden; afterwards, he fled but was seized in 2004 and was, according to Reuters, "one of the 14 'high-value detainees' transferred to Guantanamo from secret CIA prisons in September 2006." He will be the first detainee to face a trial in civilian criminal court. In the meantime, President Obama is pressing on with his efforts to close Gitmo, though the Senate voted 90-6 against the shutdown.

During President Obama's visit to France, French President Nicolas Sarkozy said his country "would accept a prisoner from Guantanamo Bay if that would facilitate the closing of the controversial detention center where terrorist suspects are held," the AP reports. European governments have wanted Guantanamo Bay to close, but their commitment to finding places (like their own countries) for the detainees is unclear. Obama, who said, "I made the decision to close Guantanamo because I do not think it makes America safer," appreciated that Sarkozy was "being good to his word." Related: Rep. Peter King doesn't want any Gitmo detainees in New York and Miss Universe Dayana Mendoza visited the prison camp and declared it "fun" and "calm and beautiful."

The five men, including Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, suspected of carrying out the 9/11 attacks issued a written statement calling the conspiracy charge "laughable." The Wall Street Journal reports, "The six-page statement, dated March 1, was filed with a military judge at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, in response to nine charges filed by military prosecutors last year." Here's a PDF; some highlights: "Were you expecting us to inform you about our secret attack plans? Blame yourselves and your failed intelligence apparatus and hold them accountable, not us... Also, as the prophet has stated: 'War is to deceive.'" They also bring up the toll of civilian deaths the U.S. caused in World War II, "Did you forget about your nuclear bombs in Hiroshima and Nagasaki?"

President Obama met yesterday with families of victims of the 9/11 attacks, trying to allay some of their fears related to his first major decision as president to close the Guantanamo Bay detention center and halt trials for four months. The president listened to them speak for forty minutes and told the group, "This is not a goodbye—it's a hello...This is just the start of our dialogue." Jim Riches, an FDNY fire chief who lost a son in the attacks, wrote an op-ed in the Post about the experience saying, "He didn't dodge any questions. He came across as a likable guy, a regular guy. He's a very good speaker. I just hope he means what he says." Also at the meeting were relatives of 17 Navy sailors slain in the October 2000 Al Qaeda attack on the destroyer Cole in Yemen. One 9/11 victim's mother told the press said that yesterday was an opportunity many relatives had not had before saying that the Cole attack was "swept under the rug...Bush tried to sweep 9/11 under the rug, too."

Relatives of victims killed during the September 11 attacks have been invited to a White House meeting tomorrow afternoon. The relatives have been eager to discuss the closing of Guantanamo Bay with President Obama, who signed an executive order to close the detention center last month. While it's unclear whether Obama will attend the meeting, retired FDNY Deputy Chief Jim Riches, whose son died on 9/11 and visited Guantanamo Bay last month, hopes he does, "We saw these people face to face. I want to tell the president what happened at Gitmo. That these detainees were laughing about what they did. I wish these trials were on TV. Americans would be outraged." Related: Yesterday former VP Dick Cheney told Politico, "If you release the hard-core Al Qaeda terrorists that are held at Guantanamo, I think they go back into the business of trying to kill more Americans and mount further mass-casualty attacks."

Khalid Sheikh Mohammed and four other suspects in the 9/11 attacks have agreed to plead guilty in "full". While it's unclear whether they'll admit to specific charges, the defendants "request[ed] an immediate hearing session to announce our confessions," according to a letter read in the Guantanamo Bay court. The NY Times reports, "The request appeared to be intended to cut short any effort to try them, and to challenge the United States government to put them to death" (but the judge isn't accepting formal pleas immediately). Mohammed, who allegedly confessed that he planned the attacks, also took time to tell the judge, "I don't trust you" and "We don’t want to waste our time with motions. All of you are paid by the U.S. government. I’m not trusting any American.”

Actually, accusing Democrats of having September 10, 2001 attitudes about the war on terror dates back to the 2004 election, but Republican presidential contender John McCain's campaign's claim that Democratic rival Barack Obama has a "September 10 mindset" appears to be the first use of 9/10 in this election year.

Who knew that Al Qaeda operatives felt so strongly about their courtroom portraits? Khaild Sheikh Mohammed, who was officially arraigned yesterday for his role in the September 11, 2001 attacks (he allegedly suggested and oversaw the plan), took exception to the sketch made by courtroom artist Jane Hamlin and asked her to change his nose.

Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, who federal authorities accuse of proposing and overseeing the September 11, 2001 attacks on the U.S., appeared in a military courtroom today at the Guantanamo Bay Naval Base in Cuba. Mohammed said he would represent himself and, when told he could face the death penalty if convicted, "Yes, this is what I wish, to be a martyr for a long time. I will, God willing, have this, by you."

The Pentagon has charged six men accused of planning the September 11, 2001 attacks and will seek the death penalty (the Pentagon's terse press release was titled "Defense Department Seeks Death Penalty for Six Guantanamo Bay Detainees"). These would be "the first trials under the terrorism-era military tribunal system."

href="http://londonist.com/2008/01/6_years_on_amne.php">Amnesty International bringing Guantanamo Bay to the American embassy to raise the profile of the continuing campaign to close the detention center.

Last Sunday and Monday a collective of activists, journalists, retired government officials and theater makers gathered at The Culture Project to begin mock impeachment proceedings against President Bush. The “trial by theater” arose in part out of frustration with Democratic leader Nancy Pelosi’s pledge to leave impeachment “off the table” when her party seized the House majority. The month long series, called A Question of Impeachment, is intended to spark debate and, participants hope,...

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