Summary Of Hamdi V. Rumsfeld

Denied citizenship by the United States, a man without a country, he was tormented and interrogated by the government based on this reality, labeled a “disloyal” citizen to the U.S. Severing Ko from the remainder

6. Pretrial detainees are "walking legal contradictions" because “According to the U.S. Constitution, they are innocent until proven guilty. At the same time, by being incarcerated while awaiting trial, they are denied a number of personal freedoms and are subjected to the poor conditions of manu jails” (Gaines

In August of 2002, without consulting Congress, the Bush administration changed the definition of torture by military standards to allow for previously illegal interrogation techniques. (Inside Guantanamo) Bush lost a lot of respect from American citizens for doing this on his own instead of consulting Congress because it added a lot of suspicion that he was trying to hide something. The Pentagon organized the interrogation techniques into three categories. The first one included yelling and deception techniques and the second included sensory deprivation, isolation, stress positions, extensive interrogation, hooding, clothing removal, and the use of phobias. The third and most severe category included waterboarding and even death threats. (Greenberg 221) Bush wanted justice to be served to the men who planned and carried out the deaths of thousands of innocent Americans in the 9/11 terrorist attacks. He thought the families of the thousands killed that day deserved that justice. Soon after, President Bush sent 14 men to Guantanamo Bay so that justice could be served to them by the military commissions he had proposed. They were to be put under the custody of the CIA where they would get what Bush thought they deserved and thanks to the Bybee Memo, Bush had complete, unlimited power when it came to core war matters such as this. While constitutional, the actions of the Bush administration as he went behind Congress’s back and came up with a new definition for torture

In order to understand rights and liberties during wartime situations, some background information needs to be addressed and explained. This paper will explain the definition of habeas corpus and the role of the Judicial, Legislative and Executive Branches of government during wartime and conflicts, how the President will sometimes take matter into his own hands.

Hamdi et al. v. Rumsfeld, Secretary of Defense, et al. could prove the undoing of the Bush administration’s legal defense of the abuses at Guantanamo Bay. In this case, four British citizens are suing Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld as well as a host of Army and Air Force Generals and policy apparatchiks for allegedly authorizing the use of torture in Afghanistan and Guantanamo Bay. The four were captured in Afghanistan, either by Americans or America’s ally, the Northern Alliance, and transported to Guantanamo Bay in Cuba where they were held for over two years. Their status there was not as enemy combatant, which guaranteed them certain protections under the Geneva Convention, but rather as

Freedom has come at a price . Nobody can verify this superior to the men and ladies who have served in the equipped administrations of this extraordinary country we call the Unified Conditions of America. Nobody knows not it resemble to have that opportunity all of a sudden grabbed away than those people who, during the time spent serving their nation, have gotten themselves detainees of war. It is an ordeal neither requested nor craved.

In Padilla v. Rumsfeld, an American citizen was arrested in Chicago as he stepped off an airplane. Federal authorities received a tip that he was planning on conducting a terrorist attack using a dirty bomb. However, they did not have enough evidence to arrest him on the charge of terrorism and was subsequently held as a material witness. He was transferred to military custody and was sent to a prison in South Carolina. Over the next several years, his attorney's sued to the federal government alleging that he was being held without due process of law. In 2012, the Supreme Court denied to hear the case. They referred the matter back to US Court of Appeals. They dismissed the case, based upon the fact that the plaintiff's attorneys named Rumsfeld as the defendant. Instead, they should have named the military commander of the prison as the defendant. This means that the government can still hold onto Padilla and that his attorneys will have to re file using the proper procedures. ("Padilla v. Rumsfeld," 2012)

POL 201 Week 5 Final Paper Civil Liberties, Habeas Corpus, and the War on Terror

This paper will explore three separate cases, providing facts about the apprehension and detention of enemy combatants, assessing the treatment of detainees at Guantanamo Bay, and will explain whether any rights were denied or granted in contrast with each other. Anyone engaging in aggressive or hostile behavior towards a country is held to several political and constitutional legalities as explored in the three following cases.

In the wake of the release of the American Prisoner Bowe Bergdhal from Talban captivity, it came to light that his release was in an exchange President Obama made to release five Guantanamo Bay prisoners. These prisoners are known to have direct ties to the Taliban and Osama bin Laden. Bergdahl had been in captivity since 2009, and allegedly spent that time in confinement and exposed to torture. It came to light thorough several of his former battalion members soon after Bergdahls release that he deserted his US Army post while on guard in eastern Afghanistan. This ignited a fire under media outlets, and soon had the entirety of the United States up in arms. The country became divided over whether Sgt. Bergdhal had actually deserted his post, or was the victim of unfortunate circumstances. Ten months after returning to home soil, Bergdahl was officially charged on March 25, 2015, with two crimes

One of the brave survivors was Mr. Mohamed Farag Bashmilah. In 2003 Mr. Bashmilah flew from Indonesia to Jordan to visit his sick mother. Upon arrival in Amman Jordan, Mohamed’s passport was seized. The officials questioned his passport, not believing that he had gotten it replaced. He was told to visit the Jordanian GID, or General Intelligence Department. Upon revealing he had visited Afghanistan three years ago, the Jordanian intelligence department placed him under arrest. For the next four nights and five days, he was tortured by

The repercussions of subjecting a person, especially an innocent one, to certain harmful coercion techniques are serious. Individuals that have been put through torture techniques are often faced with deep psychological and, not to mention, physical health issues as a result of their experiences. One notable case that demonstrates the effects of torture on the mind is the case of Omar Khadr. Khadr, who is now 23, was imprisoned at Guantanamo Bay at the age of fifteen. Khadr is a Canadian citizen who was born in Toronto. Ethnically, he is Egyptian and Palestinian. Born into a family that was heavily involved in terrorism and fundamentalism, he had seen and taken part in some questionable activities, albeit, oblivious as he lacked a good moral compass due to his young age and his upbringing. During a four-hour firefight with militants in Afghanistan, American soldiers

Guantanamo Bay, though started with good intentions, only highlights America’s negative side. Marine Major General Michael Lehnert, who played a significant role in the opening of Guantanamo, has drastically changed his opinion and said that it, “Validates every negative perception of the U.S.” (Sutton 1). One example of this occurred in 2006, when President Bush justified the use of “physical coercion” (torture) during interrogations (Fetini 1). Some of these torture methods include isolation, beatings, sleep deprivation, and general abuse. Other tactics such as disrespect for Islamic symbols or sexual provocation are used to encourage stress in detainees (Bloche 1). These immoral methods led to an international outcry. It was later remarked that the Cuban territory upon which Guantanamo is located is being used as a “concentration camp” of sorts (Fetini 1). Guantanamo and its unethical values are being recognized by nations around the world, displaying America in a bad light.

In the United States, one of the major methods in obtaining crucial information has been through the use of Guantanamo Bay. While many have condemned of the torture that is believed to occur there, not only does Guantanamo Bay comply with national and international standards, but it also complies with Common Article 3 of the Geneva Conventions (Meese 1) which states

Guantanamo Bay, Cuba is originally a naval base that was once used to house detention facilities for Haitian and Cuban refugees fleeing to the United States. It was also used as a refueling station for Navy ships. It was then converted into a high level detention facility to house enemy troops captured in the War on Terror campaign by Secretary of Defense, Donald Rumsfield. It has three main camps that house the prisoners. These prisoners of war were later referred to as enemy combatants. They were excluded from the prisoner of war statutes of the Geneva Convention because of their involvement in a foreign terrorist organization and therefore earning themselves the title of terrorists. The Guantanamo Bay Detention Center served as the perfect location to send these terrorists. It allowed the United States to strip them of any due process or protection that is provided by US law. Due to its location, being in foreign territory they are only subjected to military law. They are close enough for them to be monitored without interference of intentional agencies or international oversight. Furthermore, the US Government is holding these men without due process because they are deemed too dangerous to be released into the public because of their associations with terrorist organizations and possession of valuable information relating to National Security such as location of key members of a terrorist groups, whereabouts. However, the United States cannot release those