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bin Laden driver found guilty by military tribunal

By Michelle Malkin  •  August 6, 2008 10:41 AM

Just in this morning: The military tribunal at Gitmo has convicted bin Laden driver Salim Hamdan on charges of material support for terrorism. Glad to hear they didn’t fall for Hamdan’s sexual harassment sob story (see here).

Human rights outcry in 3…2…1…

A U.S. military jury Wednesday convicted Osama bin Laden’s driver of war crimes — making him the first war-on-terror captive convicted by contested tribunal at the U.S. Navy base at Guantánamo Bay, Cuba.

The jury announced the verdict against Salim Hamdan at 10:16 a.m.

It cleared him of the more serious crime of conspiracy but convicted him of multiple counts of providing material support for terror.

Conviction can carry a maximum life imprisonment.

The six U.S. officers who convicted him gets to next deliberate on his sentence.

The jury of six officers got the case Monday after extensive closing arguments. They deliberated a total of 6 ½ hours Monday and Tuesday at this U.S. Navy base in Cuba.

Hamdan, 37, was captured in November 2001 in Afghanistan by allied U.S. troops. He had two surface-to-air missiles in his car when captured and has been held at Guantánamo since May 2002.

Attorneys presented the war crimes case and Hamdan’s defense over the past two weeks. Conviction could carry a maximum sentence of life in prison.

Posted in: Al Qaeda, Gitmo

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Comments

  1. #1
    On August 6th, 2008 at 10:44 am, sonofdy said:

    I suggest impalement as a form of execution.

  2. #2
    On August 6th, 2008 at 10:46 am, ACHefty said:

    I suggest a pinata on the White House lawn.

  3. #3
    On August 6th, 2008 at 10:46 am, ACHefty said:

    $500 a whack to go to college funds for the children of fallen troops!

  4. #4
    On August 6th, 2008 at 10:47 am, Cosmo said:

    Why not sentence him using one of his own religion’s “customary modes of punishment” as long as we’re being “understanding” and “aware” of islam.

    Might I suggest drawing and quartering (with cars not horses, since he was a driver), or perhaps a good old-fashioned beheading (slather the sword in bacon grease first)?

    What’s good enough for the goose is good enough for the gander, right?

  5. #5
    On August 6th, 2008 at 10:49 am, alaskangrizzly said:

    On August 6th, 2008 ACHefty said:

    I suggest a pinata on the White House lawn…

    $500 a whack to go to college funds for the children of fallen troops!

    That would raise a whole lot of money :D

  6. #6
    On August 6th, 2008 at 10:50 am, cpodug said:

    Nah - put him in with the general prison population - no special privileges, pork chops, ham steaks, pulled pork sandwiches, potatoes fried in lard, pork rinds, etc. Let him subsist on general prison fare for a change.

  7. #7
    On August 6th, 2008 at 10:56 am, no2pcbs1 said:

    salim as for your position as a driver, you’re fired.

  8. #8
    On August 6th, 2008 at 11:04 am, BrianNY said:

    Gee, I hope that the US Military allowed Hamdan to consult with the Yemeni embassy before trial, or else that big-bad “World Court” is gonna be pisssssssssssssed!

  9. #9
    On August 6th, 2008 at 11:05 am, DBNinKY said:

    Hamdan is caught with two active missiles in his car, and his defense attorneys still have the nerve to argue that the Pentagon is “scapegoating” their client?! Now that’s comedy!

  10. #10
    On August 6th, 2008 at 11:07 am, ajmontana said:

    I say let him free….
    in times square.

    ….make sure you advertise the date and time.

  11. #11
    On August 6th, 2008 at 11:15 am, lgm said:

    A secret trial with secret evidence is not “due process” and accomplishes nothing. It does not legitimize his detention. Those who wanted him in jail will be happy (see above comments). But they didn’t need any stinkin’ trial.

  12. #12
    On August 6th, 2008 at 11:23 am, Gabe said:

    Just in this morning: The military tribunal at Gitmo has convicted bin Laden driver Salim Hamdan on charges of material support for terrorism. Glad to hear they didn’t fall for Hamdan’s sexual harassment sob story

    Europeans and “American” liberals are very depressed right now. In their opinion, it couldn’t POSSIBLY be a fair trial if Muslims are convicted:

    “This is not a day the administration should glory in. It’s a day that America should be ashamed of,” deputy chief defense counsel Michael Berrigan said after testimony ended in the two-week trial. “Hopefully, in the not-too-distant future, this process will go away and we’ll have real trials.”

    Translation: Any trial that convicts the heroes of liberals–Muslim terrorists–is a sham. Any trial that lets liberals’ allies–Muslim terrorists–go free is a “real trial.”

    And liberals have the audacity to claim they are “patriotic?”

  13. #13
    On August 6th, 2008 at 11:26 am, cpodug said:

    Yeah, Gabe - you got it. Just ask lgm.

  14. #14
    On August 6th, 2008 at 11:33 am, tre said:

    If the same soldier who shot Aafia Siddiqi is on the firing squad, tell him to do it right this time!

  15. #15
    On August 6th, 2008 at 11:33 am, docflash said:

    lgm,you are right,there was no need for a trial.Waste of time and money.If I was in charge(which I am not)there would be NO POW’s to start with.No libs moaning,no sob stories,over and done with.

  16. #16
    On August 6th, 2008 at 11:34 am, BrianNY said:

    “Hopefully, in the not-too-distant future, this process will go away and we’ll have real trials.” - deputy chief defense counsel Michael Berrigan

    A secret trial with secret evidence is not “due process” and accomplishes nothing. - lgm

    Further evidence of the Left’s disdain for US Military code and process.

    A question for you liberal pant loads - why is a jury of six US Military officers any less credible than a jury of twelve schleps in D.C.?

  17. #17
    On August 6th, 2008 at 11:41 am, swmbo said:

    You’re right lgm, he didn’t need no stinking trial. He was caught with two active missiles in his car. CASE CLOSED.

    Oh, and as for punishment, shoot them up his %$$.

  18. #18
    On August 6th, 2008 at 11:42 am, mchristian said:

    I went to the NY Times website so I could feel the outrage. It was there, in spades, from the incredulous tone of the article itself to the snide Bush bashing comments. Then it was back here just in time to see lgm dumping on the trial. It was almost like I had never left the Times.

  19. #19
    On August 6th, 2008 at 11:48 am, Bill Mack said:

    If the enemy wants to be treated as a POW when captured it seems they need to do a couple of things first…

    1. Look like a soldier. That means, wear a uniform

    2. Treat prisioners taken in accordance with treaties. i.e. don’t execute the prisioners.

    On the other hand, if they prefer their style of warfare, which does not comfirm to the treaties regarding the conduct of war, they should be treated accordingly.

    So far that treatment is simply that they be detained until the formal end of hostilities. Considering they have declared a never ending war against the west, that appears to be a life sentance.

    Doesn’t the Geneva Convention indicate that spys (combatants out of uniform) that are caught can be executed?

    And doesn’t having a couple of SAMs in your car classify you as a combatant?

  20. #20
    On August 6th, 2008 at 11:49 am, ACHefty said:

    Or release him in the halls of the five-sided wind tunnel, known as the Pentagon.

    Should be over in 30 seconds…just for sport.

    Again, get it on pay-per-view to raise money for the children of fallen troops, like Johnny Mike Spann.

  21. #21
    On August 6th, 2008 at 11:49 am, JDinTX said:

    Somebody in Texas with a high game fence might want to turn him loose and auction off a hunt.

  22. #22
    On August 6th, 2008 at 11:53 am, Militant Bibliophile said:

    Here’s a bit of information for lgm and all other hand wringers who should wander in: Hamdan is what is known as an “illegal combatant” by the same Geneva Codes you are so fond of blasting our boys over regarding Gitmo et al. According to said codes, illegal combatants rate two things. The first is a military tribunal, NOT a civilian trial with all the accouterments and miranda rights. The second, upon conviction, is the end of a rope. NOT imprisonment, not a fine, not return to their country of origin so they can be eventually returned to society. The. End. Of. A. Rope.

    Sucks to be them, but it might serve as an incentive to not work for terrorist scum. Insurgents are one thing, but we haven’t faced a single one of those in this entire fight (read the Geneva Convention codes to find out what one of those REALLY is. Hint: they wear identifying clothes or badges, don’t hide behind women and children, and don’t engage in mass slaughter as a terror tactic. All else are BY DEFINITION terrorists).

    Hang him, but do it quickly; we’ve got more of these scum to remove from the gene pool.

  23. #23
    On August 6th, 2008 at 12:20 pm, supersean said:

    #16

    very well said. The argument that he did not get a fair trial is not a rational one. Now lets see how many years of probation and community service the guy gets.

  24. #24
    On August 6th, 2008 at 12:23 pm, martin.musculus(jr.) said:

    The six U.S. officers who convicted him gets to next deliberate on his sentence

    Whaaaa? ESL dropout?

  25. #25
    On August 6th, 2008 at 12:35 pm, Rogue Cheddar said:

    Verdict: Guilty!
    Sentence: Must wear panties on head until day of execution.

  26. #26
    On August 6th, 2008 at 12:41 pm, sausage said:

    “Hopefully, in the not-too-distant future, this process will go away and we’ll have real trials.”

    From next year, hopefully.

  27. #27
    On August 6th, 2008 at 12:41 pm, Donut44 said:

    On August 6th, 2008 at 11:07 am, ajmontana said:

    I say let him free….
    in times square.

    ….make sure you advertise the date and time.

    AJ, only if all of us are going to be there would anything happen. It would actually be an interesting little project though. I think the defenders of the terrorist would be in full force as well.

  28. #28
    On August 6th, 2008 at 12:45 pm, Christian Soldier said:

    PC crowd at the pentagon
    PS crowd at the dos..
    Marine Lt Col still needs our help:

    https://app.etapestry.com/hosted/ThomasMoreLawCenter/OnlineGiving.html?approach=Human%20Events

  29. #29
    On August 6th, 2008 at 12:49 pm, Concerned Citizen said:

    On August 6th, 2008 at 11:15 am, lgm said:
    A secret trial with secret evidence is not “due process” and accomplishes nothing.

    Well, apparently, it’s keeping a bad guy in a place where he can’t harm our troops.

  30. #30
    On August 6th, 2008 at 1:00 pm, RedDog said:

    Oh boy! No more kibbi for him!

  31. #31
    On August 6th, 2008 at 1:20 pm, emjem24 said:

    lgm said:
    A secret trial with secret evidence is not “due process” and accomplishes nothing. It does not legitimize his detention. Those who wanted him in jail will be happy (see above comments). But they didn’t need any stinkin’ trial.

    How so? Because it wasn’t done to your liberal specifications then it must have been a Kangaroo Court, right? Are you insinuating that the military justice system isn’t fair? Or, perhaps, that JAG officers and those presiding didn’t go to Law School like the rest of the civilian attorneys, right?

    Your comment just exposes how you and many Americans wilfully remain ignorant about the military and how it operates. In your estimation, people like my husband (a military officer) are nothing more than secret police. You are way off base but this is nothing more than we expect from you, Math Man.

    This comment is one of many examples (from you) of a person who says how Conservatives are the real haters but then goes ahead and says pretty hateful things against Christians, Conservatives, and the military.

    You really need to get a clue and leave you insular chamber of ignorance. :sad:

  32. #32
    On August 6th, 2008 at 1:21 pm, emjem24 said:

    self-edit: you= your :oops:

  33. #33
    On August 6th, 2008 at 1:26 pm, AlohaGuy said:

    Have we heard from the World Court yet? We’ve heard from lgm - anyone else? CAIR? Bush made him do it. Halliburton, Cheney, Hitler, Tire Pressure…

  34. #34
    On August 6th, 2008 at 2:44 pm, Wile E Coyote said:

    I hate to be the party pooper, but there is no mention of the term “unlawful combatant” in either the Hague or the Geneva Conventions. So while the terms like civilian and combatant are well understood and clear under international law, the term “unlawful combatant” is not.

    Also, how come our hand picked prosecutors, selected secret evidence and military tribanul couldn’t find him guilty of actually committing any crime? They found him guilty of helping someone try to commit a crime!

  35. #35
    On August 6th, 2008 at 5:02 pm, Papa Louie said:

    Wile E Coyote said:

    Also, how come our hand picked prosecutors, selected secret evidence and military tribanul couldn’t find him guilty of actually committing any crime? They found him guilty of helping someone try to commit a crime!

    Oh that’s right. Liberals don’t consider “providing material support for terrorism”, aiding and abetting, or driving the get-away-car as ACTUAL crimes. That’s because they (especially the New York Times) have been getting away with such things for so long, they have come to think it is a right, not a crime, to be an accessory to terrorism.

    “Your honor, I didn’t do anything wrong. I only loaded the gun, handed it to my buddy and drove him home. I wasn’t the one who pulled the trigger!”

  36. #36
    On August 6th, 2008 at 5:33 pm, Papa Louie said:

    I was going to suggest that we put Hamdan in a women’s prison where he can have flashbacks 24/7 of the sexual harrassment torture he received at Gitmo. But, I have a hunch it was all a ruse. He might mistake a women’s prison for paradise and his fellow prisoners for 72 camel-herding virgins. :)

  37. #37
    On August 6th, 2008 at 8:05 pm, Militant Bibliophile said:

    August 6th, 2008 at 2:44 pm, Wile E Coyote

    Are you sure about that? I could have sworn I read that term in there (as well as the associated punishment). Admittedly, it’s been a few years, so maybe I need to go back and re-read them.

  38. #38
    On August 7th, 2008 at 1:15 am, RetFireman said:

    This is just horrible…a miscarriage of justice. this poor man was obviously just sitting in his car, minding his own business when Bin Laden car-jacked him, forcing him to drive to the local Stop-n-Stab for a Slushie wen all of a sudden, while UBL slipped out the back, those thugs from the military nabbed him and went around “claiming” he was UBL’s personal driver.

    How can such a thing go on in this country? In this day and age? It’s all that Bushitler guy’s fault. Where is this guy’s Constitutional Rights?

    It’s a conspiracy I tells ya…a C-O-N…spiracy!!!

  39. #39
    On August 7th, 2008 at 1:26 am, RetFireman said:

    They found him guilty of helping someone try to commit a crime!

    And the legal term for someone who does that is?

    And the sentance for someone who does that…especially when the crime said individual is convicted of helping another person commit is a terrorist act (you know…murdering innocent civilians, car bombs, suicide bombs..etc.) is?

    If you do not know the answer to those questions…well then you really should not comment on whether or not what they did was wrong.

  40. #40
    On August 7th, 2008 at 3:58 pm, rommsey said:

    Welp he has been sentenced to 5 1/2 years.

    What a slap in the face one way but necessary justice another.

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