Military Commissions

John McCain, Military Commissions

Our armed forces shouldn’t have to play catch and release

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In the Wall Street Journal today, David B. Rivkin and Lee A. Casey write:

Since routinely prosecuting captured terrorists in the civilian courts is unrealistic, some sort of military court system for the detainees must be retained, regardless of whether they are called military commissions or special courts martial. This reinvigorated military court system must be directed to begin prosecuting those captured enemy fighters that have committed war crimes against American troops or civilians. The fact that none of the individuals now held in U.S. custody in Iraq or Afghanistan has been brought to justice, even in situations where there is sufficient evidence to prosecute them, is historically unprecedented and a slap in the face of the U.S. troops fighting this war. Giving de facto immunity to war criminals is also inconsistent with international legal norms. Republicans like Sen. John McCain (R., Ariz.) and Sen. Lindsey Graham (R., S.C.), who have criticized some Bush policies, must make their voices heard here.

This system of detention and military trials must also apply here at home… READ THE REST

9/11, al Qaeda, Barack Obama, Debra Burlingame, Guantanamo, jihadists, John Murtha, Military Commissions, New York Times, September 11, terrorists

Prez Obama closing Gitmo: 9/11 families object; terrorist attacks in and near prisons likely

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Updated 12:05 PM, EST

Over the objections of a large majority of 9/11 family members, President Barack Obama is expected to sign an Executive Order today directing that the detention facilities at Guantanamo Bay Naval Base be closed:

Relatives of victims of the September 11 attacks, who were at the base this week to observe pretrial hearings, told reporters they oppose any halt to the trials. “The safest place to have these trials is Guantanamo Bay. If they were to move to the homeland it would endanger all of us,” said Lorraine Arias Believeau of Barnegat, New Jersey, whose brother, Adam, was killed in the attacks.

In addition, President Obama has directed a 120-day suspension of detainee trials so that, “…his administration [can] review the military commissions process…” and will order the closure of all overseas “C.I.A. prisons.” On January 14, 2009, the Washington Times reported, “The Pentagon is looking at several military bases in the U.S. as possible sites to hold terrorist suspects now at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, including Camp Pendleton in San Diego and Fort Leavenworth in Kansas.”

Debra Burlingame is skeptical about President Obama’s stated intent and whether he believes Guantanamo can be safely closed within one year. She offers that the detainees are far more dangerous than Obama imagined prior to being read-in on their classified files. Yesterday, she discussed this with Neil Cavuto:

But how dangerous is the average detainee at Guantanamo? Listen to Gordon Cucullu. Beginning in 2005, he made five trips to Guantanamo, spent 3 1/2 years researching the facility, and embedded with our troops there. He starts out by describing the frequent attacks made by the Islamic jihadist detainees there upon our troops:

The Wall Street Journal weighed in this morning:

One suggestion is moving the remaining prisoners to Kansas’s Fort Leavenworth, but state politicians are already sounding a red alert. The military base is integrated into the community and, lacking Guantanamo’s isolation and defense capacities, would instantly become a potential terror target. Expect similar protests from other states that are involuntarily entered in this sweepstakes.