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Obama's Child SoldiersSix days after the inauguration of President Obama, the U.S. is scheduled to begin the first trial of a child soldier accused of war crimes since World War II. This video shows why President Obama must take swift action to end the unconstitutional military commissions, and why he must bring the United States back in line with the rule of law and treaties it has signed regarding the treatment of juveniles who have been recruited or used in armed conflict.
Here is some background to the trial set for January 26: Canadian citizen Omar Khadr was 15 years old when he was captured in Afghanistan in the midst of a firefight that seriously injured Khadr and resulted in the death of a U.S. solider. Khadr was sent to Guantánamo where he was been held for 7 years — one-third of his life. He was beaten, subject to painful stress position and even used as a “human mop” after he urinated on the floor during one interrogation. Under these conditions, the prosecution of Khadr raises grave concerns about the rule of law and underscores how unconstitutional the military commissions are. President Obama must end them as he has promised. Doing so will spare ACLU client Mohammed Jawad from trial in an illegal system. Jawad was sent to Guantánamo after he was captured at about age 16 at the scene of a grenade attack in Afghanistan that injured two U.S. soldiers. Afghan authorities threatened Jawad with his death, and that of his family, if he didn’t confess to the attack. Based on the resulting false “confession” Jawad was transferred to U.S. custody, where he was further abused, and then to Guantánamo. Among other forms of cruel treatment he suffered at Guantánamo, Jawad was subjected to the so-called “frequent flyer” program, where he was moved every few hours — 112 times over two weeks — to deny him sleep. His trial date under the military commissions has not been set because the Bush administration has appealed the military judge’s decision to suppress torture-derived “confessions”. The appeals court decision is pending. Join the ACLU in calling on President-elect Obama to immediately shut down the military commissions operating at Guantánamo.
Tags: Close Guantanamo, Omar Khadr, video
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May 20th, 2009 at 7:03pm
you ACLU people better wake up, we are not all perfect. you let some go already and there again fighting against us. Keep them there our soliders have orders from our new president. He will not let what happen in the pass happen again. and dont ever bring them to this country to see a federal judge. They dont have that right there not american citizens. you in the ACLU should go to there country and live with them for a year, and play by there rules. Then come back and tell us how it was. If you were not there you dont know whats going on.
May 21st, 2009 at 9:40pm
Well...CRY ME A RIVER, sounds like that 15 year old can hold a gun and shoot at our soldiers so that little punk deserves everything he got. GOD BLESS AMERICA!!! Oh yea this is the ACLU site i'm not aloud to say God.
May 22nd, 2009 at 1:22pm
Omar is not a child soldier. A child soldier is typically stolen from his/her parents and forced to fight in a conflict. The children are often controlled with drugs. Omar was there with the blessing of his father and mother. He was fighting for a cause he and many believe in. He was there on his own accord.
May 26th, 2009 at 8:41pm
I am part of the Independent political part and if there are child soldiers inside the Gitmo prison they must pose a threat to The United States and should be held there and should receive proper education and the teaching of right and wrong so they can become successful adults and not a desert rat terrorist.
May 28th, 2009 at 2:32am
Check out the eyes of the two women in the video, the are either high on meth, or coke, but they are tore back, they are high as kites!
May 28th, 2009 at 2:39am
how did he get to afganistan in the first place! where are his parents! so he took it upon him self to get on a plain and fly to afganistan and fight U.S. soilders, WTF? I think the travesty here is that he is being called a kid!
May 28th, 2009 at 11:39am
Say No To Central Planning!!!
Jun 4th, 2009 at 8:07pm
i think that the towel on his head makes a great mop. Gitmo is a place to put the terrorists in there place, and to find out new attacks on our country. With out Gitmo there will be more terrorist attacks. Finally with out Gitmo what are we supposed to do with our hateful, evil, and crazy terrorists.
Jun 9th, 2009 at 11:56pm
mid evil Practices died many years ago with no avail!, Show your name COWARD!!!!!-Faust
P.S. You also lost the Civil War, wich you caused and both generations of my family died in. Any future conflicts will always end in the same manner BITCH!!!
Jun 13th, 2009 at 8:59pm
It's highly distressing how many ignorant right wing people are commenting on this video. Is it because Bill O'Reilly directs them to this site to throw out hateful rhetoric?
It seems nearly impossible to me that someone could say treating young teenage boys in this manner is fair or just in any way. Despite what crimes they allegedly committed, no child should be subjected to such tortuous atrocities.
I don't think people see the danger of the precedent that Gitmo sets. It isn't much of a jump to begin labeling US citizens as "domestic terrorists" (as has already been happening) and subjugate them to the same techniques used against these "foreign terrorists."
Aug 5th, 2009 at 5:44pm
You give the names of the terrorists in an attempt to humanize them. Yet you refuse to give a name to the dead US Soldiers. You only giva a title. Why dont you believe US Soldiers even deserve to have a name if they die for their country?