Terrorism

Third Time Around

ABA urges Congress to extend law that bolsters insurance against terrorist attacks

Aug 1, 2007 8:23 AM CDT

Gitmo Inmate: Please Don’t Release Me

An inmate who spends 22 hours daily in a windowless steel isolation cell at the Guantanamo Bay prison is pleading with U.S. authorities not to release him. That’s because Ahmed Belbacha, 38, fears he will be treated even worse if he is returned to his native Algeria, reports the London…

Jul 31, 2007 4:44 PM CDT

Officer: I’m Abu Ghraib Scapegoat

An Army reservist will be the first officer to face court-martial for abuses at Iraq’s Abu Ghraib prison when he goes on trial next month. Lt. Col. Steven L. Jordan says the military has made him a scapegoat, a charge backed up by interrogators who say Jordan was not involved…

Jul 31, 2007 3:45 PM CDT

Security High at Baghdad Court

The Rule of Law Complex in Baghdad houses both jailed detainees and judges whose lives could be in danger on the outside. The complex is heavily fortified, and the names of the judges who work and live there remain secret, the New York Times reports. “Our work is really a…

Jul 30, 2007 2:26 PM CDT

Gonzales Controversy Heats Up

As controversy over claimed inaccuracies in U.S. Attorney General Alberto Gonzales’ testimony before Congressional panels appears to be bubbling toward a boiling point, two leading members of the Senate Judiciary Committee seem to be working together to deal with it in a bipartisan manner. Following a formal request to the…

Jul 30, 2007 9:39 AM CDT

Army Lawyer, ABA Prez Back Habeas

An Army reserve lawyer told a House committee yesterday that Guantanamo review tribunals relied on “garbage” evidence and simply “rubber stamped detentions.” Lt. Col. Stephen E. Abraham made the comments as he testified in favor of a bill to restore habeas corpus rights for prisoners who want to contest their…

Jul 27, 2007 3:49 PM CDT

4 Dems Seek Alleged AG Perjury Probe

Updated: Upping the ante in continuing Congressional hearings on issues ranging from the firings of nine U.S. attorneys to American policy on terrorism, four Senate Democrats have formally asked the Justice Department to appoint a special prosecutor to investigate possible perjury by U.S. Attorney General Alberto Gonzales. “It has become…

Jul 27, 2007 1:53 AM CDT

Hamdan Lawyer to Head Emory U Clinic

A prominent U.S. Navy lawyer will serve as a visiting professor at Emory University School of Law this fall after retiring from the military, and he will help establish a new international humanitarian law clinic. In addition to teaching courses on international humanitarian law, criminal law, evidence, and military law,…

Jul 25, 2007 10:46 PM CDT

FBI Wants Telecom Database

The FBI is asking Congress for $5 million to pay telecom companies to retain phone and Internet information for two years as a resource in terrorism investigations. Officials told the Washington Post that the FBI would still need to obtain a subpoena or administrative warrant before accessing the information. Mark…

Jul 25, 2007 8:55 PM CDT

Report: Detainees a Real Threat

A report that reviews the terrorist threat posed by detainees at Guantanamo Bay counters assertions that many of those being held are lower-level terrorist sympathizers. The report concludes that 73 percent of the detainees are a “demonstrated threat” to U.S. or coalition forces and 95 percent are at least a…

Jul 25, 2007 8:15 PM CDT

UK Terrorism Measures Proposed

British Prime Minister Gordon Brown told Parliament today that the 28-day limit on questioning of terrorism suspects is too short. British police have to charge or release suspects by the end of the 28-day period. Brown did not specifically say how he would change the law, but said one option…

Jul 25, 2007 5:50 PM CDT

Woman Sues Fidel Castro in Dad’s Death

It isn’t every day that a U.S. court has to figure out how to serve a complaint on Fidel Castro–not to mention his brother, Raul, the Republic of Cuba and the Cuban army. So Justice Nancy Mills, who sits in Waldo County Superior Court in Maine, took a little time…

Jul 24, 2007 7:47 PM CDT

Code Words Disputed at Padilla Trial

A defense expert at Jose Padilla’s terrorism trial testified yesterday that government translators were wrong about purported terrorist code words. The government contended “tourism” meant jihad, “eggplants” referred to rocket-propelled grenades, and “football” meant violence. Translator Kamal Yunis disagreed, the Associated Press reports. He said “tourism” could refer to a…

Jul 24, 2007 3:08 PM CDT

Spy Chief: Torture Not Allowed

National Intelligence Director Mike McConnell assured TV viewers yesterday that torture is not used or condoned under new guidelines for terrorist interrogations by the CIA. McConnell told NBC’s “Meet the Press” that permissible techniques are “not torture, and there would be no permanent damage” to those who undergo them, the…

Jul 23, 2007 5:30 PM CDT

Inside Gitmo Lawyer Creates a Stir

An Army reserve lawyer with an inside view of military tribunals at Guantanamo is scheduled to testify about his criticisms of the review process before a House committee this Thursday. Stephen Abraham is an unlikely critic, the New York Times reports in a profile. He is a lawyer in civilian…

Jul 23, 2007 4:23 PM CDT