Five months after the Supreme Court ruled that prisoners at the military prison in Guantanamo Bay have the right to habeas corpus, a U.S. judge ruled that five Algerians should be released due to lack of evidence of their guilt. Habeas corpus is a legal principle under which prisoners can challenge their imprisonment.
The five Algerians were arrested in Bosnia after September 11, 2001, on the suspicion that they planned to bomb a U.S. embassy in Sarajevo. The Justice Department later said that the men had planned to enter Afghanistan to fight U.S. forces there. The men have been held without being charged since their arrest.
After hearing their case, the judge ruled that there was not enough proof that the men planned to attack the embassy or fight in Afghanistan. He also ruled, though, that a sixth Algerian who was arrested at the same time should remain imprisoned at Guantanamo.
The U.S. government has the right to appeal the case before the men are released. The Guantanamo Bay military prison was set up in January 2002 to detain terrorism suspects captured after 9/11. There are about 255 prisoners there. President-elect Barack Obama promised in his campaign that he would close the prison if elected president.
Related Links
- Map of Guantanamo Bay
Map from NPR showing the location of the Guantanamo Bay military prison in Cuba.
(Source: NPR, November 20, 2008) - U.S. Judge Orders Five Algerians at Guantanamo Freed
Story from Reuters covers the judge’s ruling on the case of the six Algerians held at Guantanamo.
(Source: Reuters, November 20, 2008) - U.S. Judge Orders Algerians Freed
Article from the BBC about the case, including the reasons cited by the judge for his decision. Includes links to other articles about the Guantanamo Bay prison.
(Source: BBC, November 20, 2008) - FACTBOX: Facts About the Guantanamo Prison Camp
Information about the Guantanamo Bay prison broken down into simple bullet points.
(Source: Reuters, November 20, 2008)