Posted on 06/01/2009 9:06:02 AM PDT by NormsRevenge
US NAVAL BASE AT GUANTANAMO BAY, Cuba (AFP) – Military officials at Guantanamo Bay on Monday are to hold the first open hearing of the Obama administration, in the case of a Canadian charged with killing a US soldier.
The session was likely to highlight the many challenges President Barack Obama faces in changing the military commissions system and closing Guantanamo Bay, the US naval base in southern Cuba where 240 "war on terror" detainees are still held.
Judge Patrick Parish, a US Army colonel, has decided to publicly examine the arguments of the parties in the case of Toronto-born Omar Khadr. The prosecution has asked to suspend the debate for four additional months.
Parish is also expected to ask Khadr, who was captured in Afghanistan at the age of 15, to choose which of his lawyers he would like to be his lead attorney after infighting between the lawyers. Should Khadr respond, it would mark one of the rare times he has spoken in court.
"We've asked for an additional 120 days to complete the review process," said US Navy Captain John Murphy, the chief prosecutor for the Guantanamo trials.
The request applies to 11 detainees who had been formally placed through the military commissions process by the administration of former president George W. Bush.
The day of his inauguration on January 20, Obama obtained a first 120-day suspension of all Guantanamo terror cases. But that request expired last month.
(Excerpt) Read more at news.yahoo.com ...
Gitmo. Still Open for Business.
File photo shows a US flag near "Camp Six" detention centre in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. Military officials at Guantanamo Bay are to hold the first open hearing of the Obama administration, in the case of a Canadian charged with killing a US soldier. (AFP/POOl/File/Mandel Ngan)
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