Posted on 12/20/2005 7:10:50 AM PST by minus_273
BERLIN, Germany (CNN) -- A Hezbollah militant sentenced to life in Germany for murdering a U.S. Navy diver during the 1985 hijacking of a U.S. jetliner has been freed, officials said.
The German government denied on Tuesday the release was related to the freeing of a German hostage in Iraq.
Mohammed Ali Hamadi was released Thursday and allowed to return to his native Lebanon on the next day, after qualifying for parole after 19 years in prison, said Ulrich Hermanski, spokesman for the North Rhine Wesphalia state justice ministry.
"There was no special treatment," Hermanski said in a telephone interview.
(Excerpt) Read more at cnn.com ...
I still don't understand what legal angle the U.S. would have used to get this guy extradited from Germany.
Bush should recall our Ambassador and enforce sanctions against German imports starting today.
A SEAL team would be much more appropriate, not to mention much more effective.
It was already the policy in 1987. Capital punishment is illegal by the German institution (Grundgesetz Artikel 102) since 1949. Therefore it is not possible to extradite to countries with capital punishment if the prisioner is affected. This was clearly the case with Hamadi.
Sorry, Michael, but the only thing this animal should have been doing since 1989 is taking a dirt nap!
My guess is that they readily agreed to cough up the guy...to get their hostage released. I also bet they gave the exact position of the guy upon release to the CIA...and he will be seized within 48 hours. The US, as far as I know...never gave up its right to prosecute the guy. So he's another candidate for Guantanamo. And he deserves every bit of torture that they dish out there.
‘snip’
The judge, as part of his summing up, said he realised that the verdict may be received with bitterness, as a setback in the so-called war on terror, but the court had to follow legal procedures.
Mr Schulz said it showed that it was impossible to get a fair trial of a terrorist case in Germany.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/3460875.stm
Knowing that there are men who are capable of inflicting such cold blooded,barbaric,vicious cruelty against a defenseless human being is terrifying.
Robert looked like every mother's favorite child,to remember how he was beaten and thrown out on the tarmac like a broken doll was more than heart wrenching.
Some who have signed on to this latest "no torture" bill should look at that picture too. While I would never advocate for any hands on physical abuse,I see nothing wrong with turning off the heat in winter and the air conditioning in the summer and permitting other discomforts in order to obtain available information from those who are thought to have it. God help us all,and quickly I pray.
CATCH HIM, KILL HIM...simple really
This is sickening.
Get right on it
Wherever the lust for American blood ultimately takes this pig. Islamic terrorists are like child molesters--they cannot be cured and recividism is extremely high after release from prison. If he doesn't kill again, it will be because someone killed him first. Which would be a step in the right direction.
"There was no special treatment," Hermanski said in a telephone interview.
Hermanski continued --"Indeed, not special treatment at all. We let go everyone in prison who has killed an american. In fact, if we find others in prison who have killed americans, we will let those go too. Our goal is to release anyone that has ever done anything to hurt Americans, Americans, and anything made in America. We do this because we know the Americans are too weary from Iraq, and we have decided to forget everything America has done for us. My goodness, let's get that albatross off our necks. WOO WOO, MR. ONLY SUPERPOWER LEFT! I mean, look at N. Korea and Iran, getting nukes and nobody cares. Why should be act like we care about Americans?" (what he was really saying for Germany.)
Since we're not in the business of wet work, one can only hope that someone gives him a dirt nap post haste.
In 1987 it was clear, he killed an American, we claim jurisdiction over that crime. Today, to my knowledge double jeopardy doesn't apply, our legal system doesn't consider a foreign conviction a bar to US prosecution for the same crime. Maybe someone with more specific legal knowledge can confirm that.
There is an angle to this story that probably would have bothered the hell out of me at the time, though. From what I've read, Stethem was apparently on active duty and was traveling back to the U.S. on leave or for re-assignment. It would seem to me that having active soldiers flying on commercial airlines like this -- particularly through an airport in Athens that was notorious for its lax airline security -- would represent a serious risk. Was this point even discussed at the time?
recidivism, sorry!
Not if John McCain and his fellow Democrats have their way.
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