BERLIN : U.S. takes six terror suspects
U.S. forces on Friday flew six terrorist suspects out of Bosnia after that country's Supreme Court ruled that it had too little evidence to charge them, the first known instance of the United States casting its anti-terror net beyond the homeland and Afghan war zone.
The latest U.S. move to detain and prosecute terrorism suspects was met with fierce protests by Muslims in Sarajevo, Bosnia-Herzegovina's capital, where 300 family members and supporters tried to block the U.S. military transport aircraft carrying the six men to an unknown destination.
The hand-over came amid increasing criticism from human rights organizations in Europe, which accuse U.S. authorities of trampling civil liberties in the pursuit of terrorists since the Sept. 11 attacks in the United States.
A senior military source who spoke on condition that he not be identified said the men five Algerians and a Yemeni would be transferred by the end of the weekend to the U.S. detention facility at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.
Cuba: Red Cross examines prisoners
Red Cross workers began questioning al-Qaida and Taliban prisoners Friday about their treatment at the hands of the U.S. military, while rights groups insisted they should be classified as POWs for their own protection.
Four members of the International Committee of the Red Cross including a physician, an expert on prison conditions and a linguist who speaks several languages, including Arabic arrived Thursday for what was expected to be a weeklong visit at this U.S. military outpost.
Interviews are voluntary and include questions about the prisoners' health, detention conditions and treatment. It was unclear how many detainees had been questioned Friday.
Under the Geneva Convention, POWs must be tried by the same courts and under the same procedures as U.S. soldiers. Under that status, prisoners would be tried for war crimes through courts-martial or civilian courts but not by military tribunals.
Under POW status, prisoners must also be housed in similar conditions to their guards.
Washington: Judge denies request to televise terror trial
A federal judge on Friday denied a request for televised coverage of the trial of Zacarias Moussaoui, the only man charged in the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.
U.S. District Judge Leonie Brinkema said she would not set aside a ban on photographing and broadcasting federal criminal proceedings. The ban "does not violate the constitutional rights of either the public or the broadcast media," she said.
Brinkema also cited security concerns in denying the request by Court TV to televise the trial in Alexandria, Va.
"Given the issues raised in the indictment, any societal benefits from photographing and broadcasting these proceedings are heavily outweighed by the significant dangers worldwide broadcasting of this trial would pose to the orderly and secure administration of justice," the judge said in a written order.
Moussaoui's lawyer, Edward MacMahon Jr., had told an earlier hearing that his client supported a televised trial with some restrictions.
No comments
Commenting is turned off for this story.