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Apr
9
Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, the self-confessed architect of the 9/11 attack on the US which destroyed both of the twin towers of the world trade centre in New York could be set free without punishment. According to media reports Khalid has been assigned a Navy lawyer to defend him in the first US military courts assembled since world war 2. The case is set to start soon in Guantanamo Bay.
Khalid may be set free because he was subjected to “waterboarding,” a torture method which simulates drowning and a technique which has been used by the CIA in gathering evidence. The problem being once this is revealed in court further evidence may be deemed unusable. Their is a caveat in the military court system which doesn’t allow evidence gained through torture as admissible.
The CIA revealed in late 2004 that they used “waterboarding” as a technique used against detainees to gather further evidence. US election candidate for the Republican party John McCain was recently asked if the use of waterboarding was torture he confirmed it was. McCain, a former prisoner of war was subjected to torture during the Vietnam war and when asked how did the US forces get to a system where they utilise torture techniques he replied “I don’t know.”
Perhaps the second most wanted man in the US, Khalid Sheikh Mohammed may be set free due to the fact partial evidence was gathered whilst under duress. In what may be one of the most regrettable acts by the US the use of torture may be a double edged sword in convicting this man.
Hopefully this will stop the “extraordinary rendition” programme which sees the CIA fly detainees in secret flights to countries where they are outside of the US legal system. This programme has seen countless detainees tortured in many secret CIA prisons around the world.