President Obama Likely to Order Military Commission Charges Dropped Against Terrorist Suspect

[cal04]

Source: ABC News

President Obama Likely to Order Military Commission Charges Dropped Against Terrorist Suspect Al-Nashiri Friday

ABC News has learned that on Friday, President Obama will likely order the Department of Defense's Military Commission to withdraw charges against terrorist suspect Abd al-Rahim al-Nashiri. The charges may later be reinstated in a military commission or pursued in a civilian court. Al-Nashiri will remain in custody.

The announcement will not be made until after President Obama meets with the families of victims of terrorist attacks on 9/11 and on the U.S.S. Cole, where he will assure them that this step is not being done to be lenient towards al-Nashiri. The move is being done to stop the continued prosecution of al-Nashiri in a court system that his administration may ultimately find illegitimate, not for any other reason, sources told ABC News.

President Obama has expressed concern about whether the military commissions set up by the Bush administration are the proper way to go forward in pursuing charges against the U.S. detainees, and on January 22 he asked all the judges supervising the trials of detainees for a continuance of 120 days, so a team of administration officials could review the best way forward.

In almost the cases, that continuance request was granted. But last week the judge supervising the al-Nashiri trial -- Army Col. James L. Pohl, the chief judge at the Guantanamo Bay war crimes court -- said he would not heed President Obama's request for a 120-day continuance, or delay, in prosecutions of terrorism suspects. Pohl called the president's request "not reasonable" and not "in the interests of justice."

Read more: http://blogs.abcnews.com/politicalpunch/2009/02/president-oba-2.html

[Hydra]

1. Hopefully he will let them all go

Since the chance that we actually picked up anyone involved in the 9/11 attacks is slim, and we've tortured many of them.

Not holding my breath, though.

[Pirate Smile]

2. This is just to deal with the one asshole judge who refused to grant a continuance.

This is just a STFU to Army Col. James L. Pohl.

[Bolo Boffin]

3. You won't hear about that "meet with the families" bit on Fox News.

Or the "pursuing charges" in a "legitimate court system." Hannity will insinuate that al-Nashiri will be given a pass card to the Capitol Building on his way out of GTMO.

[Xithras]

4. Nasiri will just be executed anyway.

That's the stupidity of all this. Yemen already convicted Nashiri of bombing the Cole and sentenced him to death. Yemen turned him over to us for trial because Bush wanted to make it look like the U.S. was being tough on him too. The Feds wanted to execute him for his role in the bombing.

So I guess they were just going to kill him twice.

If the charges against Nashiri are dropped, we'll just return him to Yemen...where he will be killed for the conviction that has already occurred.

[humbled_opinion]

5. LOL...

My co-workers mostly military and mostly conservative minded, just said Obama better watch out in that meeting with the victims families that one of them don't throw a shoe at him..... It sparked a debate that would set a seriously bad tone for his administration...

I just laughed.

[jody]

6. Dropping charges is one way of losing a battle against judge. n/t