US refers charges against alleged bomber of USS COLE

The US referred charges yesterday against the man accused of masterminding the 2000 bombing the USS Cole in Yemen. It is the first death penalty case to be tried by military commission under President Obama. US military prosecutors charged the accused, Abd al- Rahim al Nashiri, with murder, terrorism and war crimes. The Convening Authority independently reviewed the charges and determined to proceed with the capital charges. Al Nashiri, a Yemeni, was captured in 2002 and was held by the CIA in secret prisons until he was transferred to Guantanamo Bay in 2006. His attorneys have argued that the case against him should be dismissed because he was tortured while in CIA custody. Al Nashiri was one of the detainees who was subjected to water boarded. His case will likely be the first to be tried in the new facility known as Camp Justice at Guantanamo Bay.

(cgb)