Obama To Sign Gitmo Closure Order Thursday

New Administration Looks To Shut Down Detention Center Within A Year And Halt All Trials Underway

(CBS/ AP)  President Barack Obama plans to sign on Thursday an executive order to close the Guantanamo Bay detention center within a year and halt military trials of terror suspects held there, the Associated Press reported.

The executive order was one of three expected imminently on how to interrogate and prosecute al Qaeda, Taliban or other foreign fighters believed to threaten the United States.

A senior Obama aide said he would sign the order on Thursday, fulfilling his campaign promise to shut down a facility that critics around the world say violates domestic and international detainee rights. The aide spoke on condition of anonymity because the event has not yet been announced.

The draft order also would declare a halt to all trials currently under way at the facility, where roughly 245 detainees in the battle against terrorism on terror are held.

The Bush administration created the detention facility after the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks.

Earlier Wednesday, a military judge agreed to President Obama's request to suspend the Guantanamo war crimes trial of Canadian Omar Khadr, accused of killing an American soldier with a grenade in Afghanistan in 2002.

It is the first in a series of delays sought by Mr. Obama as his administration reviews the legal system for prosecuting alleged terrorists.

Army Col. Patrick Parrish, the judge in the case, issued a written order granting the 120-day suspension without a hearing.

Later, a judge is to consider suspending the case of five men charged in the Sept. 11 attacks.

In the motion filed for the Sept. 11 case, U.S. military prosecutor Clay Trivett said a continuance is necessary in all pending cases because the review may result in significant changes to the system.

"The interests of justice served by granting the requested continuance outweigh the interests of both the public and the accused in a prompt trial," Trivett wrote. He said the motion was written at the direction of the president and defense secretary.

"It will permit the newly inaugurated president and his administration to undertake a thorough review of both the pending cases and the military commissions process generally," he added.

Human rights groups at Guantanamo to observe this week's session of the war crimes court welcomed what appeared to be the looming end of the special tribunals.

"It's a great first step but it is only a first step," said Gabor Rona, international director of Human Rights First. "The suspension of military commissions so soon after President Obama took office is an indication of the sense of urgency he feels about reversing the destructive course that the previous administration was taking in fighting terrorism."

Mr. Obama has said he will close Guantanamo, where the U.S. holds about 245 men, and had been expected to suspend the widely criticized war-crimes trials created by former President George Bush and Congress in 2006.

The president's nominee for attorney general has said the so-called military commissions lack sufficient legal protections for defendants and that they could be tried in the United States.

But CBS News foreign affairs analyst Pamela Falk says the new American leader faces a significant challenge in closing the prison camp. Mr. Obama needs to figure out what to do with the detainees already cleared for release, the detainees deemed low-level criminal suspects, and the handful of high-value detainees implicated directly in the Sept. 11 terror attacks.

"The Obama Administration needs time to formulate a detailed plan for closing the base and to negotiate with foreign leaders to accept detainees who cannot return to their home countries," said Falk, "and freezing the military tribunals gives it time to do that, while making sure no more harm is done."

Jamil Dakwar, director of the human rights program at the American Civil Liberties Union, said it was a positive step but "the president's order leaves open the option of this discredited system remaining in existence."

Relatives of victims of the Sept. 11 attacks, who were also at the base to observe the hearings, have said they oppose any further delay in the trials of the men charged in the case.

The motion for a suspension came on the day a military judge adjourned the war crimes court just before Mr. Obama was sworn in by noting the future of the commissions is in doubt. The hearings were dismissed until Wednesday "unless otherwise ordered."

There are war crimes charges pending against 21 men, including the five charged with murder and other crimes in the Sept. 11 case. Judges will be required to suspend the other cases as well though hearings may not be necessary.

Mr. Obama's swift move to close Guantanamo has not been without opposition.

Sen. Sam Brownback introduced legislation Wednesday requiring President Barack Obama to give Congress a 90-day notice before moving to close the prison.

The Kansas Republican's bill also would require the president to provide a study on the feasibility of closing the facility in Cuba or transferring some 245 suspected terrorists to any other location.

One site often mentioned is the U.S. Disciplinary Barracks at Fort Leavenworth, along with Camp Pendleton, Calif., and a Navy brig in South Carolina.

"We cannot afford to make snap decisions about detainee policy, and the American people should be able to judge any policy changes for themselves," Brownback said.

Given the timing, there is little chance Brownback's bill would be enacted before Obama issues an executive order. However, Brownback's staff said the legislation would be compatible with Obama's desire to make a decision within a year, giving ample time for review.

Fellow Republicans Sen. Pat Roberts of Kansas and Sen. Kit Bond of Missouri co-sponsored Brownback's bill.

Navy Cmd. J.D. Gordon, spokesman for Secretary of Defense Robert Gates, said the Pentagon has made no decisions about detainees.

"We are examining any number of options and what it would take to implement such a decision if it were made," Gordon said.

[cyclebuster]

well lastdance136, i guess that clears up your viewon muslims eh?

[rhs648]

Nearly half of U.S. voters (49%) say the United States should not close the terrorist prison camp at Guantanamo Naval Base in Cuba, but the identical number (49%) also say Barack Obama is Very likely to close it in the first year of his presidency.

Only 32% of voters say the Guantanamo prison camp should be closed, according to a new Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey. One-out-of-five (19%) are undecided


-Why is Barack bending over backwards for the minority?


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Posted by promaclaura

It may be that President Obama sees Gitmo as a bargaining chip to the Muslim world. Gitmo is a symbol of oppression to the Muslim world. Is it possible that President Obama is treating closing Gitmo as a goodwill gesture to the Muslim world? Perhaps, he wants to use this as an encore for improving relations. This is just speculation on my part.

[rhs648]

azirine - rhs648 - lopezf11 - jgg000006 - cyclebuster

The Favorite Fetish of the Degenerate : Torture,
Sexual Degradation, Rape, Sodomy, and Murder

Anyone who approves and talks positive on an issue of :
Torture and Murder

Has the Desires, Passions and Fantasies of doing just that :

azirine - rhs648 - lopezf11 - jgg000006 - cyclebuster
Tell us how long have you had these Degenerate: Desires, Passions and Fantasies of :
Committing Sodomy, Torture and Murder ? ?

azirine - rhs648 - lopezf11 - jgg000006 - cyclebuster
You are : SICK - SICK - SICK - SICK - SICK -

azirine - rhs648 - lopezf11 - jgg000006 - cyclebuster
You don''''t belong in any type of Civilized Society
You NEED to be taken out of Society
You NEED to be watched Closely

azirine - rhs648 - lopezf11 - jgg000006 - cyclebuster
YOU ARE A DANGER TO SOCIETY ! ! !


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Posted by lastdance136

At least we share good company. You seem to be outumbered 5 to 1. Does this say something about your views? Time to reevaluate them.

[valhalla14]

Wow! It is amazing to me that this country is adopting socialism/Communisim when so many of our borthers and sisters died in the heat of battle for nearly 100 years of fighting it. Shocking.

Now to gitmo, what Obongo is doing is horrendous. These people will kill again, it has been proven. How many americans must die before you psuedo-socialists realize that? These people are enemies of this land, with Obongo doing this, he is also and should get treated as such. actions speak louder than words.

[midasman5]

What the merchants of deceipt at CBS "News" fail to mention in the video is that "poor" Omar Khadr comes from a family of terrorists who emmigrated to Canada to escape justice in the middle east. In fact, Kahdr''s father and several brothers were killed by coalition troops fighting in Afghanistan and Iraq.

[mydiatribe]

Probably no other issue TYPIFIES the great divide between the Left and the Right than Gitmo.

FYI Gitmo is a series of open fences. Never in the history of warfare have we seen a detention facility that was so transparent for the reporters. Whatever evidence there is of torture reported is based upon speculation and not from eyewitness accounts. Interrogation is not torture but neither is it a pleasant experience. The Great Shame of Gitmo will be that it closed before it completed its mission. When the rants of these shortsighted critics eventually falls silent, many will realize too late, the myth that has been perpetrated on them.

[promaclaura]

Nearly half of U.S. voters (49%) say the United States should not close the terrorist prison camp at Guantanamo Naval Base in Cuba, but the identical number (49%) also say Barack Obama is Very likely to close it in the first year of his presidency.

Only 32% of voters say the Guantanamo prison camp should be closed, according to a new Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey. One-out-of-five (19%) are undecided


-Why is Barack bending over backwards for the minority?

[promaclaura]

"There is no need to suspend [the military tribunals]. There is no reason why [Obama] can''t conduct a concurrent review at the same time that the military commission process is moving forward to render justice for the terrorists that have murdered thousands of people," said former Cmdr. Kirk Lippold, who lost 17 sailors during a suicide bombing attack on the USS Cole in 2000. A suspect in the case is being held at Guantanamo.

"It demeans their deaths because we seem to be more concerned with the rights of detainees than we are with the justice that is being denied to my sailors that were killed," Lippold told FOXNews.com.

[promaclaura]

Here are some thoughts from those who suffered the most from terrorists:

Family members of people killed on September 11, 2001, and in other terror attacks say they are outraged by President Obama''s draft order calling for the suspension of war crimes trials of prisoners being held at Guantanamo Bay.

"To me it''s beyond comprehension that they would take the side of the terrorists," said Peter Gadiel, whose son, James, was killed at the World Trade Center on 9/11. "Many of these people have been released and been right back killing, right back at their terrorist work again."

"I see no reason why we should delay these proceedings. Let justice be served," said Jefferson Crowther, whose 24-year-old son, Welles, was killed in the Twin Towers after he saved the lives of several others.

Critics blasted Obama''s decision, which they said would delay justice in cases that have already been waiting for the better part of a decade.

[renojmc]

I can hear terrorists worldwide cheering. Now, if only he can manage to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory in Iraq...

[wvu74621]

wvu74621 - azirine - rhs648 - lopezf11 - jgg000006 - cyclebuster
YOU ARE A DANGER TO SOCIETY ! ! !


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Posted by lastdance136 at 06:23 AM : Jan 22, 2009

Did you burp?

[lastdance136]

wvu74621- azirine - rhs648 - lopezf11 - jgg000006 - cyclebuster

The Favorite Fetish of the Degenerate : Torture,
Sexual Degradation, Rape, Sodomy, and Murder

Anyone who approves and talks positive on an issue of :
Torture and Murder

Has the Desires, Passions and Fantasies of doing just that :

wvu74621 - azirine - rhs648 - lopezf11 - jgg000006 - cyclebuster
Tell us how long have you had these Degenerate: Desires, Passions and Fantasies of :
Committing Sodomy, Torture and Murder ? ?

wvu74621 - azirine - rhs648 - lopezf11 - jgg000006 - cyclebuster
You are : SICK - SICK - SICK - SICK - SICK -

wvu74621 - azirine - rhs648 - lopezf11 - jgg000006 - cyclebuster
You don''t belong in any type of Civilized Society
You NEED to be taken out of Society
You NEED to be watched Closely

wvu74621 - azirine - rhs648 - lopezf11 - jgg000006 - cyclebuster
YOU ARE A DANGER TO SOCIETY ! ! !

[wvu74621]

Oh well, if any of them does anything bad it''''s on Obama''''s tab.
Of course, the media will try to shift the blame. My guess? 30-40 of these guys end up in the news again.




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Posted by azirine at 02:20 AM : Jan 22, 2009

The ones that are to be released have nowhere to go, most of the countries they come from don''t want them back. I say send them to Afghanistan where they will meet thier well deserved demise. For those of you that feel sorry for them, you could take one into your home. Perhaps put them on welfare, maybe marry one of them, get them a green card and a job at Wal-mart, and in the evenings sit on the porch holding hands while singing Kumbaya and sipping the lemming kool-aid.

[cyclebuster]

once the murdering terrorists are released he will be a hero with his family

[downtowner97]

No trials, but the place won''t be closed for a year. It sounds like everyone there was just sentenced to 1 year without a trial. Am I misunderstanding this?

[cyclebuster]

can you blame obama? nobody wants to see their friends and family in prison.

[rhs648]

Does anyone care if these prisoners have done anything? Just because they were turned in by someone, that does not make it true. Remember that an Iraqi exile told us that Saddam had WMDs did not mean that he had WMDs. Even Bush now admits to that.
We should try them, present our evidence, and if found quilty, punish them to the full extent of the law.


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Posted by TangoUniforn

Are you forgetting that the detainees deemed to be innocent or no longer dangerous have been released. Those remaining are considered the dangerous or high value detainees. I certainly trust our military and intelligence agencies more than the detainess themselves.

[rhs648]

Easy solution send them to gaza and let the israeli''''s deal with them, thats the least they could do for us.


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Posted by jsd330

Now that is a novel idea. Nobody wants these people, not even their home countries. Israel is unlikely to torture them. However, some of their home countries might be more than willing to torture them. An American prision is too comfortable.

[tangouniforn]

Does anyone care if these prisoners have done anything? Just because they were turned in by someone, that does not make it true. Remember that an Iraqi exile told us that Saddam had WMDs did not mean that he had WMDs. Even Bush now admits to that.
We should try them, present our evidence, and if found quilty, punish them to the full extent of the law.

[lopezf11]

Does anyone remember 911 ?


Posted by mikeinoxford

Obamites don''t remember murdered Americans. They prefer to have lugubrious memories of dead and "tortured jihadis. That is why Obama''s first call to the Middle East wss to one of his kindred, the Abbas guy.