Two decades after the 9/11 attacks and 9 years after war crimes charges were filed, the pretrial wrangling in the case against accused 9/11 mastermind Khalid Sheikh Mohammed and 4 other defendants resumed after a long Covid shutdown.
, joining hundreds of other prisoners already held in this U.S. enclave. The reasons the wheels of justice are moving so slowly are many. It's a logistical nightmare to travel here. The military commissions system set up for this trial was created from scratch in the Obama administration, so every rule can be a point of contention — and hours of litigation. There has been frequent turnover of judges and lawyers.
Defense lawyers say there is one main reason so much here is shrouded in secrecy: The government is still trying to hide the details of what happened to the detainees who were held and tortured by the CIA in secret prisons before they were transferred to Guantánamo. "The goal of the United States has been to afford fairness in reaching just outcomes to these cases," the prosecution said."Beyond that, the Department of Defense cannot speculate on matters related to the Commissions' timeline."
"What we've been doing is to have, in essence, no trial at all," Morris said."It's not necessarily a foregone conclusion that there will be a trial."to operate the detention facility here, on a rocky coastline in a part of Cuba that the U.S. has occupied since the end of the Spanish-American war.
Amid worldwide condemnation, his administration ended up releasing more than 500 captives and granting the remaining prisoners access to lawyers. Many were sent back home or released to third countries without incident. About 17 percent have re-engaged in terrorism, according to the Office of the Director of National Intelligence. Two former Guantánamo detainees surfaced last month in key roles with the Taliban as they took control of Afghanistan.
Australia Latest News, Australia Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Gold Star daughter: 20 years after 9/11, where do we go from here?'Though the United States' involvement in Afghanistan ended on August 31, my son will feel the war's ripples as he grows up with only stories about his grandfather,' Kelly McHugh-Stewart writes for CNNOpinion.
Read more »
Muslim Americans still facing discrimination 20 years after 9/11“You go to school with other people of different backgrounds and you realize ... what the promise of the United States is. And when you see it not living up to that promise, then I think it instills in us a sense of wanting to help and fix that.”
Read more »
Two 9/11 victims identified nearly 20 years laterIt's been nearly two decades since September 11, 2001, and just 60% of the people who died that day have been officially identified.
Read more »
20 years later, 9/11 witnesses still feel the painArtist Ruth Sergel recorded hundreds of 9/11 witness testimonials from 2002-2003. Twenty years after the attack, three of them share their path of healing from the trauma. This NBC News Digital short was inspired by the NBC News Studios and Yard 44 film “Memory Box: Echoes of 9/11”. The film premieres Wednesday, September 8th at 10PM ET on MSNBC and will simultaneously begin streaming exclusively on Peacock TV.
Read more »
9/11 Survivor Advocate John Feal Says 20-Year Anniversary Will Be Emotional9/11 survivor advocate John Feal says 20th anniversary will be emotional.
Read more »
How Guantanamo Bay prison has changed since 9/11Accused 9/11 mastermind Khalid Sheikh Mohammed is in court for the first time in over a year. NBC News’ Ken Dilanian reports from Guantanamo Bay with an inside look at the prison once known for its torture tactics.
Read more »