A U.S. judge on Thursday ordered that one of the youngest detainees held at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, be released for what is expected to be a trip home to Afghanistan, a case that could be a model for dealing with the other 228 prisoners there.
The release of Mohammed Jawad would be the first under new stricter rules set by the U.S. Congress for dealing with the detainees held at the prison at a U.S. naval base in Cuba, which President Barack Obama has pledged to close by mid-January 2010.
WASHINGTON — A federal judge on Thursday ordered that one of the youngest detainees at Guantánamo Bay, Cuba, be released by late August in a case that drew wide attention because of rulings that he had been tortured by Afghan officials and abused in American custody. “Enough has been imposed on this young man to date,” the judge, Ellen Segal Huvelle, said in a courtroom crowded with people drawn by what had become a confrontation between the judge and the Obama administration.
But it was not clear Thursday whether Judge Huvelle’s order will mean freedom for the detainee, Mohammed Jawad, who has long faced American charges that, as a teenager, he threw a hand grenade in Kabul in 2002 that injured two American servicemen and their Afghan interpreter.
Will the Obama administration release Guantanamo detainee Mohammed Jawad, thereby pleasing the ACLU crowd? Or, is it going to move forward with a criminal prosecution, as the DOJ has suggested?
Here is the background, in brief. Jawad is accused of throwing a hand grenade at a vehicle carrying two American servicemen and their Afghan translator. All three were seriously wounded in the attack. A federal court ruled today that Jawad should be released. This comes after that same court lambasted the evidence the Department of Justice was using to justify Jawad’s detention earlier this month. The ACLU, which represents Jawad, and U.S. District Court Judge Ellen Huvelle want Jawad released as soon as possible.
But the Obama administration is reportedly hesitating, saying that they are still exploring the possibility of bringing criminal charges against Jawad. Obama’s DOJ says new evidence has come to light, including possibly eyewitnesses who can identify Jawad as the attacker.
“The criminal investigation is continuing,” Deputy Assistant Attorney General Ian Gershengorn said to Judge Huvelle.
However, the ACLU is under the impression that the DOJ has agreed to release Jawad to his home country of Afghanistan. A statement from the ACLU’s Jonathan Hafetz says, “We are pleased that the Justice Department has expressed a commitment to getting him home so that this nightmare of abuse and injustice can finally come to an end.”
It appears that the Guantanamo judges will be receptive to the Obama administration's request to stay these commissions, as another military judge -- this one overseeing the proceedings against five detainees accused of involvement in the 9/11 attacks, including Khalid Sheikh Mohammed -- just ordered the commissions stayed for 120 days, as Obama ordered his prosecutors to request. And the Swiss Government today announced that it will agree to accept released Guantanamo detainees if that helps close the camp, which Switzerland, like most of the civilized world, considers a blight on Western justice and an ongoing violation of international law. Those are fairly rapid (and encouraging) events for the first 24 hours.
On a related note, AP obtained the draft Executive Order now being circulated in the White House that directs that "the detention facilities at Guantanamo for individuals covered by this order shall be closed as soon as practicable, and no later than one year from the date of this order." A definitive date certain for closing that camp is vital, though the real question is and will continue to be: under what system and rules will the detainees, once transferred to the U.S., be tried?
hamed Jawad – Child Detainee
ISN: 900
Age at time of arrest: 12
Nationality: Afghanistan
Residence: Pakistan
Date of Arrest: 12-17-2002
Arrested in: Kabul, Afghanistan
A judge ruled Thursday that one of the youngest detainees brought to Guantanamo Bay is being held illegally and must be released 6 years after the detainee from Afghanistan says he was tortured into confessing at age 12.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20090730/pl_nm/us_guantanamo_jawad;_ylt=AjEtvEhm64wMR35F90OlBPQV6w8F;_ylu=X3oDMTJtNzFuOTV1BGFzc2V0A25tLzIwMDkwNzMwL3VzX2d1YW50YW5hbW9famF3YWQEY3BvcwM3BHBvcwM3BHNlYwN5bl90b3Bfc3RvcmllcwRzbGsDanVkZ2VvcmRlcnNy
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