Gitmo military tribunals coming

On his first full day in office, President Obama signed an executive order calling for the shutdown of the Guantanamo Bay terrorist detention center in Cuba. It's still open...not that this is a bad thing in my opinion.

As the Wall Street Journal tells us, military tribunals are coming back.

On Thursday, U.S. officials said Defense Secretary Robert Gates was expected to soon approve the start of military court proceedings against Abd al-Rahim al-Nashiri, who is accused of four bombings, including the 2000 attack on the USS Cole in Yemen.

The tribunals under the Obama administration were originally announced in November 2009 at a time the administration still held out hopes for opening a new federal prison in Illinois to hold military trials.

In December, Congress passed a defense-spending bill that contained new curbs on moving prisoners to the U.S. from Guantanamo for any trials. Mr. Obama protested the curbs but signed the bill.

Attorney General Eric Holder announced the military trials for Mr. Nashiri and the four others at the same time he announced civilian criminal trials in New York City for Khalid Sheikh Mohammed and other alleged plotters of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks. The plans for civilian trials ground to a halt early in 2010 after a backlash from New Yorkers and members of Congress over security concerns and other issues.

Related posts:

Rep. Schilling visits Gitmo--says "No" to terrorists in Illinois

Karl Rove: Gitmo not a recruiting tool for terrorists

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