Detainee in U.S. for Trial
WASHINGTON — U.S. authorities have brought the first Guantanamo Bay detainee to the United States, flying him into New York to face trial for bombing U.S. embassies, the Justice Department said Tuesday.
The department said Ahmed Ghailani arrived in the early morning hours Tuesday, to be held in U.S. law enforcement custody until his trial in federal court in lower Manhattan. Ghailani was expected to make his initial appearance in Manhattan federal court later Tuesday.
“With his appearance in federal court today, Ahmed Ghailani is being held accountable for his alleged role in the bombing of U.S. Embassies in Tanzania and Kenya and the murder of 224 people,” Attorney General Eric Holder said in a press release. “The Justice Department has a long history of securely detaining and successfully prosecuting terror suspects through the criminal justice system, and we will bring that experience to bear in seeking justice in this case.”
Ghailani’s trial will be an important test case for the Obama administration’s plan to close the detention center at Guantanamo in seven months and bring some of the suspects to trial.
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Mac Says:
I still believe the US would be better served to bring these prisoners for trial at The Hague…
Posted on June 13th, 2009 at 11:05 pm