Guantanamo Bay: Sept. 11 accused Khalid Sheikh Mohammed and four others appeared in court for the first time in more than 18 months on Tuesday as US military prosecutors seek justice after two decades of terror attacks that rocked the world.
Echoing the challenges of nine years of pre-trial hearings, the new judge, Air Force Colonel Mathew McCalladjourned the session after just two and a half hours on procedural issues relating to his appointment.
It is expected to resume on Wednesday, although debate over issues of anecdotal evidence may not resume until next week.
Mohamed, with a dense, gray-red beard, entered the courtroom of the US naval base in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, earlier on Tuesday, as the nine-year-old trial resumed after a prolonged halt in the Covid-19 pandemic.
The Military Tribunal courtroom was filled with prosecutors, interpreters and five defense teams for Mohammed and alleged co-conspirators Ammar al-Baluchi, Walid bin Atash, Ramzi bin al-Shibh and Mustafa al-Housawi.
In the public gallery, behind thick glass, were members of the families of 2,976 people who had been accused of murder nearly 20 years earlier by defendants.
If found guilty, the accused faces possible hanging.
But the pre-trial phase is now in its ninth year and now stuck in what is the central issue – the five were repeatedly tortured CIA after their capture.
Without a political intervention – President Joe Biden pledged during his campaign to close the military prison at Guantanamo Bay – a full trial could take more than a year to begin, let alone reach a verdict. leave.
Trial resumed in a very safe manner”camp justice“The courtroom on top of a hill in the US naval base at Guantanamo Bay.
The defendants entered one by one with military escorts, and each sat down at a table with their respective defense team.
Mohammed wore a blue turban and matching face mask which he removed to release the long, flowing beard. He had an animated conversation with Bin Atash as he leafs through piles of documents.
Bin Atash, who reportedly helped plan the 9/11 attacks, wore a pink keffiyeh headdress and a military desert camouflage jacket, with a prosthesis on one leg, while walking slowly as he traveled to Afghanistan in 1996. I was defeated in a gunfight.
Al-Shibh, a member of the “Hamburg Cell” of the kidnappers, also wore desert camouflage over his white cotton pants, reflecting his days as one. al Qaeda Jihadi.
Balochi, also known as Ali Abdul Aziz Ali and Mohammad’s nephew, revealed a short, black beard under his mask and wore the Sindhi cap of his native Balochistan with a traditional vest over his white robe . He is accused of transferring money in conspiracy.
Fifth Respondent, courageous, who teamed up with Balochi, donned a Saudi thobe-style white robe. He also had a pillow that he placed on the hospital chair he had reserved for him, which his lawyers say was spent in humiliating interrogation by the CIA due to rectal damage.
McCall, who is the eighth to be nominated to preside, opened up by asking each defendant if they understood the guidelines for the hearing.
“Yes,” replied each, some in English and some in their own languages.
He then began discussing the COVID-19 protocol, after a prolonged delay due to the pandemic.
Already in recent weeks several people who have attended hearings on other Guantanamo cases have tested positive despite strict requirements for vaccinations and masks.
Putting down his own mask to speak, McCall said that unless he is addressing the court, everyone should remain masked.
Defense lawyers said they were eager to stay where in February 2019, a case was made to discredit the prosecution’s evidence leading to the torture of the five at the hands of the CIA between 2002 and 2006.
But the resumption of testing started slowly. The first day focused on a process unique to military commissions, the judge’s “wire hardening” assessment of his own background to investigate potential bias.
The process is sensitive because the judge, prosecutor and many defense attorneys are all part of Defense Department Legal Corps.
Echoing the challenges of nine years of pre-trial hearings, the new judge, Air Force Colonel Mathew McCalladjourned the session after just two and a half hours on procedural issues relating to his appointment.
It is expected to resume on Wednesday, although debate over issues of anecdotal evidence may not resume until next week.
Mohamed, with a dense, gray-red beard, entered the courtroom of the US naval base in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, earlier on Tuesday, as the nine-year-old trial resumed after a prolonged halt in the Covid-19 pandemic.
The Military Tribunal courtroom was filled with prosecutors, interpreters and five defense teams for Mohammed and alleged co-conspirators Ammar al-Baluchi, Walid bin Atash, Ramzi bin al-Shibh and Mustafa al-Housawi.
In the public gallery, behind thick glass, were members of the families of 2,976 people who had been accused of murder nearly 20 years earlier by defendants.
If found guilty, the accused faces possible hanging.
But the pre-trial phase is now in its ninth year and now stuck in what is the central issue – the five were repeatedly tortured CIA after their capture.
Without a political intervention – President Joe Biden pledged during his campaign to close the military prison at Guantanamo Bay – a full trial could take more than a year to begin, let alone reach a verdict. leave.
Trial resumed in a very safe manner”camp justice“The courtroom on top of a hill in the US naval base at Guantanamo Bay.
The defendants entered one by one with military escorts, and each sat down at a table with their respective defense team.
Mohammed wore a blue turban and matching face mask which he removed to release the long, flowing beard. He had an animated conversation with Bin Atash as he leafs through piles of documents.
Bin Atash, who reportedly helped plan the 9/11 attacks, wore a pink keffiyeh headdress and a military desert camouflage jacket, with a prosthesis on one leg, while walking slowly as he traveled to Afghanistan in 1996. I was defeated in a gunfight.
Al-Shibh, a member of the “Hamburg Cell” of the kidnappers, also wore desert camouflage over his white cotton pants, reflecting his days as one. al Qaeda Jihadi.
Balochi, also known as Ali Abdul Aziz Ali and Mohammad’s nephew, revealed a short, black beard under his mask and wore the Sindhi cap of his native Balochistan with a traditional vest over his white robe . He is accused of transferring money in conspiracy.
Fifth Respondent, courageous, who teamed up with Balochi, donned a Saudi thobe-style white robe. He also had a pillow that he placed on the hospital chair he had reserved for him, which his lawyers say was spent in humiliating interrogation by the CIA due to rectal damage.
McCall, who is the eighth to be nominated to preside, opened up by asking each defendant if they understood the guidelines for the hearing.
“Yes,” replied each, some in English and some in their own languages.
He then began discussing the COVID-19 protocol, after a prolonged delay due to the pandemic.
Already in recent weeks several people who have attended hearings on other Guantanamo cases have tested positive despite strict requirements for vaccinations and masks.
Putting down his own mask to speak, McCall said that unless he is addressing the court, everyone should remain masked.
Defense lawyers said they were eager to stay where in February 2019, a case was made to discredit the prosecution’s evidence leading to the torture of the five at the hands of the CIA between 2002 and 2006.
But the resumption of testing started slowly. The first day focused on a process unique to military commissions, the judge’s “wire hardening” assessment of his own background to investigate potential bias.
The process is sensitive because the judge, prosecutor and many defense attorneys are all part of Defense Department Legal Corps.
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