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Guantánamo terror trials begin in secret
The first stage in the trial of 14 high-level terrorism suspects held at the Guantánamo Bay detention centre will begin today behind closed doors, with both the media and the men's defence lawyers barred from attending.
Among those facing a panel of three US military officers today will be Khalid Sheikh Muhammad, the alleged mastermind behind the September 11 attacks, fellow top al-Qaida suspect Abu Zubaydah and Ramzi bin al-Shibh, also implicated in September 11.
The 14 detainees - officially described by the US as "high-value" suspects - were moved to Guantánamo Bay in September from a series of secret CIA detention centres.
The process beginning today is known as the "combatant status review" process, by which the panel will decide whether they should continue to be held at Guantánamo, or be transferred elsewhere or freed.
The reviews, which have no time limit for completion, are not intended to decide on a detainee's innocence or guilt.
However, they are likely to pave the way for formal trials on terrorism charges before special military tribunals created under the Military Commissions Act, passed last year.
Opponents of the military commissions say they deny suspects' rights and allow unfair evidence such as statements obtained through torture.
All detainees at the US military base in Cuba appear periodically before review panels to determine whether they should remain in custody.
Announcing today's hearings on Tuesday, the Pentagon also said that similar boards for other Guantánamo detainees during 2006 had seen 55 people recommended for transfer and 273 returned to be held as "enemy combatants", the designation the US gives to the al-Qaida and Taliban suspects at the centre.
More
http://www.guardian.co.uk/guantanamo/story/0,,2030400,00.html
The 14 detainees - officially described by the US as "high-value" suspects - were moved to Guantánamo Bay in September from a series of secret CIA detention centres.
The process beginning today is known as the "combatant status review" process, by which the panel will decide whether they should continue to be held at Guantánamo, or be transferred elsewhere or freed.
The reviews, which have no time limit for completion, are not intended to decide on a detainee's innocence or guilt.
However, they are likely to pave the way for formal trials on terrorism charges before special military tribunals created under the Military Commissions Act, passed last year.
Opponents of the military commissions say they deny suspects' rights and allow unfair evidence such as statements obtained through torture.
All detainees at the US military base in Cuba appear periodically before review panels to determine whether they should remain in custody.
Announcing today's hearings on Tuesday, the Pentagon also said that similar boards for other Guantánamo detainees during 2006 had seen 55 people recommended for transfer and 273 returned to be held as "enemy combatants", the designation the US gives to the al-Qaida and Taliban suspects at the centre.
More
http://www.guardian.co.uk/guantanamo/story/0,,2030400,00.html
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The 14 detainees - described by the US as "high-value" suspects - were transferred to the US navy base in Cuba in September after years held in secret CIA prisons.
On Friday, the suspects will go before "combatant status review" panels of three military officers who will decide whether they should continue to be held as "enemy combatants" at Guantanamo.
No defence lawyers or reporters will be present, adding to concerns over the equity of the process.
The Pentagon closed the proceedings to the media for the first time since the panels started in 2005. The only account of the hearings will come from the US military. Lawyers for the suspects have also been shut out.
The suspects include Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, the alleged mastermind of the attacks on September 11, 2001, as well as Ramzi bin al-Shibh, suspected of being a conspirator, Abu Zubaydah, suspected of being an Osama bin Laden aide, and Hambali, identified by one name, who is alleged to have organised bombings in Bali in 2002.
More
http://english.aljazeera.net/NR/exeres/72B92130-9DA1-4ED9-9858-017AF063ABCA.htm
The closed-door sessions will decide whether Khalid Sheikh Mohammed and the others can be deemed enemy combatants and therefore face military trials.
They were transferred to Guantanamo after years in secret CIA jails.
This is the first time they have faced any court. But human rights groups say the hearings are sham tribunals.
More
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/6433371.stm