November, 20 2008, 02:06pm EDT
Amnesty International Welcomes Habeas Corpus Hearings
Human Rights Organization Hails the Return to the Rule of Law; Urges the US Government to Respect Judge’s Decision
WASHINGTON
Larry Cox, executive director of Amnesty International USA, issued the following statement following the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia decision to grant the release of five detainees held at the U.S.-controlled detention facility at Guantanamo Bay based on insufficient evidence to consider them enemy combatants. The sixth detainee was determined to be an enemy combatant due to additional corroborating evidence.
"Finally, after more than six years of legal wrangling, numerous U.S. Supreme Court decisions and delays, Guantanamo detainees received their day in court. This habeas corpus hearing is a victory for the rule of law. This hearing is a direct result of the June 2008 U.S. Supreme Court decision that found that, under the U.S. Constitution, detainees at Guantanamo have the right to habeas corpus.
"With today's decision, Judge Richard J. Leon strikes another blow to the Bush administration's deeply flawed policies of indefinite detention, ill-treatment and injustice.
"In an unusual move, Judge Leon asked the U.S. government to seriously consider the available evidence before pursuing an appeal. Amnesty International urges the United States to heed the judge's words, free these detainees and allow these men to rebuild their lives."
Amnesty International has long called for the U.S. government to close Guantanamo and either fairly try or release the remaining detainees. The human rights organization urges President-elect Barack Obama to announce a date for the closure of Guantanamo, issue an executive order to end torture and support a commission of inquiry during his first 100 days in office.
Amnesty International is a worldwide movement of people who campaign for internationally recognized human rights for all. Our supporters are outraged by human rights abuses but inspired by hope for a better world - so we work to improve human rights through campaigning and international solidarity. We have more than 2.2 million members and subscribers in more than 150 countries and regions and we coordinate this support to act for justice on a wide range of issues.
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Guterres "is particularly concerned over the hundreds of Israeli airstrikes on several locations in Syria" and has stressed the "urgent need to de-escalate violence on all fronts throughout the country," said U.N. spokesperson Stephane Dujarric.
Israel claims its invasion and bombardment of Syria—which come as the United States and Turkey have also violated Syrian sovereignty with air and ground attacks—are meant to create a security buffer along the countries' shared border in the wake of last week's fall of former Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and amid the IDF's ongoing assault on Gaza, which has killed or wounded more than 162,000 Palestinians and is the subject of an International Court of Justice genocide case.
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Other countries including France, Russia, and Saudi Arabia have criticized Israel's invasion, while the United States defended the move.
"The Syrian army abandoned its positions in the area... which potentially creates a vacuum that could have been filled by terrorist organizations," U.S. State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller said at a press briefing earlier this week. "Israel has said that these actions are temporary to defend its borders. These are not permanent actions... We support all sides upholding the 1974 disengagement agreement."
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Addressing the assassination of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson and conversations it has sparked about the country's for-profit system, longtime Medicare for All advocate Sen. Bernie Sanders on Wednesday condemned the murder and stressed that getting to universal coverage will require a movement challenging corporate money in politics.
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Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.)—a co-sponsor of Sanders' Medicare for All Act—similarly toldHuffPost in a Tuesday interview, "The visceral response from people across this country who feel cheated, ripped off, and threatened by the vile practices of their insurance companies should be a warning to everyone in the healthcare system."
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