A forgotten day of infamy

[OakRidgeStars]

Before there was 9/11, there was 10/12. Do you remember?.

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http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/co ... 06353.html

Administration halts prosecution of alleged USS Cole bomber

By Peter Finn
Washington Post Staff Writer
Thursday, August 26, 2010; 8:47 PM

The Obama administration has shelved the planned prosecution of Abd al-Rahim al-Nashiri, the alleged coordinator of the Oct. 2000 suicide attack on the USS Cole in Yemen, according to a court filing.

The decision at least temporarily scuttles what was supposed to be the signature trial of a major al-Qaeda figure under a reformed system of military commissions. And it comes practically on the eve of the 10th anniversary of the attack, which killed 17 sailors and wounded dozens when a boat packed with explosives ripped a hole in the side of the warship in the port of Aden.

In a filing this week in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia, the Justice Department said that "no charges are either pending or contemplated with respect to al-Nashiri in the near future."

The statement, tucked into a motion to dismiss a petition by Nashiri's attorneys, suggests that the prospect of further military trials for detainees held at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, has all but ground to a halt, much as the administration's plan to try the accused plotters of the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks in federal court has stalled.

(Photos: Inside the prison camps at Guantanamo)

Only two cases are moving forward at Guantanamo Bay, and both were sworn and referred for trial by the time Obama took office. In January 2009, Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates directed the Convening Authority for Military Commissions to stop referring cases for trial, an order that 20 months later has not been rescinded.

Military officials said a team of prosecutors in the Nashiri case has been ready go to trial for some time. And several months ago, military officials seemed confident that Nashiri would be arraigned this summer.

"It's politics at this point," said one military official who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss policy. He said he thinks the administration does not want to proceed against a high-value detainee without some prospect of civilian trials for other major figures at Guantanamo Bay.

A White House official disputed that.

"We are confident that the reformed military commissions are a lawful, fair and effective prosecutorial forum and that the Department of Defense will handle the referrals in an appropriate manner consistent with the interests of justice," said the official, who also spoke on the condition of anonymity.

(More: A graphic timeline of the USS Cole case)

The Defense Department issued a statement Thursday saying the case is not stalled. "Prosecutors in the Office of Military Commissions are actively investigating the case against Mr. al-Nashiri and are developing charges against him," the statement said.

With the 10th anniversary of the Cole bombing approaching on Oct. 12, relatives of those killed in the attack expressed deep frustration with the delay.

(Photos: Victims from the USS Cole among those remembered at Arlington Cemetery)

"After 10 years, it seems like nobody really cares," said Gloria Clodfelter, whose 21-year-old son, Kenneth, was killed on the Cole.

Military prosecutors allege that Nashiri, a Saudi national, was a senior al-Qaeda operative and close associate of Osama bin Laden, who orchestrated the suicide attack on the Cole. Nashiri was scheduled to be arraigned in February 2009 but the new administration instructed military prosecutors to suspend legal proceedings at Guantanamo Bay. The charges against Nashiri were withdrawn.

In November 2009, however, Attorney General Eric H. Holder Jr. appeared to revive the case when he announced that the military would prosecute Nashiri, one of at least 36 detainees who could be tired in federal court or a military commission.

"With regard to the Cole bombing, that was an attack on a United States warship, and that, I think, is appropriately placed into the military commission setting," Holder said.

But critics of military commissions say the Nashiri case exemplifies the system's flaws, particularly the ability to introduce certain evidence such as hearsay statements that probably would not be admitted in federal court. The prosecution is expected to rely heavily on statements made to the FBI by two Yemenis who allegedly implicated Nashiri. Neither witness is expected at trial, but the FBI agents who interviewed them will testify, said Nashiri's military attorney, Navy Lt. Cmdr. Stephen C. Reyes. "Unlike in federal court, you don't have the right to confront the witnesses against you," he said.

Such indirect testimony could be critical to a conviction because any incriminating statements Nashiri might have made are probably inadmissible under the 2009 Military Commissions Act, which bars the use of evidence obtained through torture or cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment.

Nashiri, 45, was captured in the United Arab Emirates in November 2002, and immediately placed in CIA custody. He was among three detainees held by the agency who was water-boarded, and a report by the CIA's inspector general found that Nashiri was threatened with a gun and a power drill.

"I am very confident, based upon what I have heard, that there is more than sufficient evidence linking him to the attack on Cole directly, and that they do not need any of the information that may have come from black site interviews and interrogations," said Kirk S. Lippold, who was commander of the Cole when it was attacked.

Reyes said Nashiri's treatment at the hands of the CIA will be part of any proceeding and will be relevant to any sentence he receives if he is found guilty. The government is expected to seek the death penalty.

"I'm not admitting to guilty, but his treatment is absolutely relevant in a death case and can be used in mitigation to lessen the sentence," Reyes said.

Nashiri, who has been held at Camp 7 at Guantanamo Bay since September 2006, has never appeared in court. But according to the transcript of a 2007 Combatant Status Review Tribunal, he said that he had nothing to do with the Cole bombing and that his connections to those involved in the explosion, including the purchase of the suicide boat, were unwitting. "We were planning to be involved in a fishing project," he said.


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Never forget http://www.cole.navy.mil/Site%20Pages/Memorial.aspx

[GS78]

Is anyone surprised ? I am a little surprised that Obama hasn't pardoned these misguided freedom fighters already.

[VBshooter]

Things like this should leave no doubt in anyones mind that these traitorous bastards need to be removed from office ASAP. That ruling is a slap in the face that the families of those men don;t deserve and only further adds to the world wide embarrasment of America that is the Obama administration.

[Paliden]

obummer is a plant to father the cause of islam & muslim. The cocoran says it is ok to lie and go against islam to defeat your enemies. Do yo think bummers done that? If you don't see it by now you never will. Better get ready for a very differant world coming to your neighborhood soon.
Best sign my wife saw at DC was held by one of DC finest brother:

YOU JUST WANT YOUR WHITE PRIVILEGES BACK CRACKER

Was out of memory in camera, damn

[zephyp]

Yeah, well things are going to come to a head pretty soon. We've got all this uncontrolled spending, no solutions to economic disaster, no improvement in jobs, self professed commies on the administration, the border fiasco, the illegal alien fiasco, absentee ballot fiasco for our troops, letting the NBPP thugs walk in PA, trying to shut down Fox News, health care insurance mess, financial regulation mess, threats to let Bush tax cuts expire, etc, etc, etc.

I honestly dont believe the American people will shoulder much more. I think this election is going to be a massacre...and I dont mean just seeing a big turn over. I think we are going to see some serious issues right around the election.

If the dems lose power they will continue to screw us badly until they are forced to stop. If they retain power they will screw us even worse.

All these issues are kinda like wood all stacked up...been a hot summer and its pretty dry except of course the gasoline twits pour onto the dry wood... One little spark is all its gonna take...

[Paliden]

Admiral Yamanoto said after the raid on Pearl Harbour:
"I fear all we have done is to awaken a sleeping giant and fill him with a terrible resolve."

Think it applies to today? I do.

[zephyp]

Admiral Yamanoto said after the raid on Pearl Harbour:
"I fear all we have done is to awaken a sleeping giant and fill him with a terrible resolve."

Think it applies to today? I do.

[chfaunce]

If the dems lose power they will continue to screw us badly until they are forced to stop. If they retain power they will screw us even worse.

All these issues are kinda like wood all stacked up...been a hot summer and its pretty dry except of course the gasoline twits pour onto the dry wood... One little spark is all its gonna take...

Well, what's the Congressional approval rating again - under 20%? Certainly, the Democrats do not hold an 80% majority. I think it's fair to say that people on both sides are pretty fed up.

And I think the spark has already fallen...

[SgtBill]

I am tired and old and I want my country back to the way it is supposed to be where people don't hate or dislike other people because of their political party or the color of their skin and where honesty means something to all the people like where are your papers that everyone in this country has in one form or another. Like a birth certificate etc. Where I can invite people into my home and don't have to worry about what type of conversation we will or might have and if I will offend anyone because I like or dislike a certain person. Or if the person voted for the idiot Obama that now hold's the most important office in our country and is supposed to represent ALL of us as United States Citizens and won't even salute our flag that our brother's and sister's may have died for while in the military. People like my father in law who voted for him because his PARTY told him to. He now wishes that he never had and I told him it is like pulling the trigger at the wrong time IT CAN'T BE TAKEN BACK and the rest of this country has to live with ass's like you and you'r piss poor decision and inability to think for yourself.

Ok, I ranted enough. Had a bad night's sleep and the pain just won't let go even with the morphine.
Bill

[Paliden]

[quote="SgtBill"]I am tired and old and I want my country back

Bill, I think you would have enjoyed Sat. in DC, Joyce was there and then watched it on TV after I recorded it. The message was inspiring, uplifting and gave you hope. It was not an attack on parties but a path to where we started and where we need to get back to. Anyone who listened to it with any kind of an open mind would agree no matter of their back ground or belief.

May we have the wisdom to choose the right road to take us back to where we came from!

[SgtBill]

Thank's but I don't ever go to D.C. if I don't have to. The last time I was even close was at DK's wedding and I knew that along with my handgun I had Henry' and DK with their weapons so we could stand off the obama supporters if they saw all the anti Obama stickers on my vehicle. LOL
Bill

[kwe1009]

Same thing happened with Clinton and the terrorists that committed the Khobar Towers attack. Nothing surprising here unfortunately.