Harry Thomas Special Report 021108 http://harrythomas.info US to seek death penalty in 9/11 case The Pentagon is charging six detainees at More

Harry Thomas Special Report 021108 http://harrythomas.info US to seek death penalty in 9/11 case The Pentagon is charging six detainees at Guantanamo Bay with murder and war crimes in connection with the Sept. 11 terror attacks on America, and will seek the death penalty. Brig. Gen. Thomas W. Hartmann says the charges lay out a long-term sophisticated plan by the al-Qaida organization to attack the United States of America. The attack over six years ago killed nearly 3,000 Americans. Hartmann, the legal adviser to the military tribunal system, says the six include Khalid Sheik Mohammed, the suspected mastermind of the attacks, in which hijacked planes were flown into buildings in New York and Washington. Another hijacked plane crashed in the fields of western Pennsylvania. Military prosecutors will ask for the death penalty for the attacks that killed nearly 3,000 Americans, according to a second official who spoke on condition of anonymity because the charges had not been announced. Among those held at Guantanamo is Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, the suspected mastermind of the attack six years ago in which hijacked planes were flown into buildings in New York and Washington. Five others are expected to be named in sworn charges. "The department has been working diligently to prepare cases and bring charges against a number of individuals who have been involved in some of the most grievous acts of violence and terror against the United States and our allies," Whitman said. Prosecutors have been working for years to assemble the case against suspects in the attacks that prompted the Bush administration to launch its global war on terror. "The prosecution team is close to moving forward on referring charges on a number of individuals," Whitman said, declining to name the defendants. The New York Times reported in Monday's editions that the others are Mohammed al-Qahtani, the man officials have labeled the 20th hijacker; Ramzi Binalshibh, said to have been the main intermediary between the hijackers and leaders of Al Qaeda; Ali Abd al-Aziz Ali, known as Ammar al-Baluchi, a nephew of Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, who has been identified as Mohammed's lieutenant for the 2001 operation; al-Baluchi's assistant, Mustafa Ahmad al-Hawsawi; and Waleed bin Attash, a detainee known as Khallad, who investigators say selected and trained some of the hijackers. The men would be tried in the military tribunal system that was set up by the administration shortly after the start of the counterterror war and has been widely criticized for it rules on legal representation for suspects, hearings behind closed doors and past allegations of inmate abuse at Guantanamo. Original rules allowed the military to exclude the defendant from his own trial, permitted statements made under torture, and forbade appeal to an independent court; but the U.S. Supreme Court struck down the system in 2006 and a revised plan set up after Congress enacted a new law has included some additional rights. Defense lawyers still criticize the system for it's secrecy. The decision to seek the death penalty also is likely to draw criticism from within the international community. A number of countries, including U.S. allies, have said they would object to the use of capital punishment for their nationals held at Guantanamo. Officials plan to hold the trial in a specially constructed court at Guantanamo that will allow lawyers, journalists and some others to be present, but leave relatives of Sept. 11 victims and others to watch the trial through closed-circuit broadcasts. Khalid Sheikh Mohammed was among 15 so-called "high-value detainees" who were held at length by the CIA in secret overseas prisons — some subject to what critics call torture — before being handed over to the military in 2006. Last week, for the first time, the Bush administration acknowledged that Mohammed was among three susects who were waterboarded. CIA Director Michael Hayden said that waterboarding was used, in part, because of widespread belief among U.S. intelligence officials that more catastrophic attacks were imminent. Waterboarding involves strapping a person down and pouring water over the suspect's cloth-covered face to create the sensation of drowning. It has been traced back hundreds of years, to the Spanish Inquisition, and is condemned by nations around the world. Critics call it a form of torture. In Guantanamo Bay hearings that have been criticized as unfair, he confessed to the 9/11 attack and a chilling string of other terror plots last March. "I was responsible for the 9/11 operation from A to Z," Mohammed said in a statement read during the session, according to hearing transcripts later released by the Pentagon. Under the system, prosecutors issue sworn charges, which then are forwarded to the convening authority for military commissions, Susan Crawford. She can refer some or all of them for trial.
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http://www.TrinaMacchi.com -One of Hopkinton's most admired historic estates. Built in the 1840's, this majestic Italianate style home has been More

http://www.TrinaMacchi.com -One of Hopkinton's most admired historic estates. Built in the 1840's, this majestic Italianate style home has been completely updated combining old world elegance with all the amenities of today's lifestyle. Located in the heart of downtown Hopkinton featuring 5 large bdrms, 3+ baths, 10 ft. ceilings, 3 story staircase, walk up cupola, gourmet kitchen, two bdrm Au-pair suite w/sep. entrance, in-home theater, fitness & game room. Close to T,495,MassPike, shops & dining. Real estate video tours by http://www.NashuaVideoTours.com
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