Habeas petition

A petition of habeas corpus

Habeas corpus

is a writ, or legal action, through which a prisoner can be released from unlawful detention. The remedy can be sought by the prisoner or by another person coming to his aid. Habeas corpus originated in the English legal system, but it is now available in many nations...

 was filed on Al Qosi's behalf.
Over two hundred captives had habeas corpus petitions filed on their behalf before the Detainee Treatment Act of 2005 and the Military Commissions Act of 2006

Military Commissions Act of 2006

The United States Military Commissions Act of 2006, also known as HR-6166, was an Act of Congress signed by President George W. Bush on October 17, 2006. Drafted in the wake of the Supreme Court's decision on Hamdan v...

 closed off the captives' access to the US civilian justice system.
On June 12, 2008, in its ruling on the Boumediene v. Bush

Boumediene v. Bush

Boumediene v. Bush, 553 U.S. 723 , was a writ of habeas corpus submission made in a civilian court of the United States on behalf of Lakhdar Boumediene, a naturalized citizen of Bosnia and Herzegovina, held in military detention by the United States at the Guantanamo Bay detention camps in Cuba...

 habeas corpus petition, the United States Supreme Court over-rode the Congress and Presidency, and restored the captives' access to habeas corpus.

In September 2007 the Department of Defense published the unclassified dossiers arising from the Combatant Status Review Tribunals of 179 captives.
The Department of Defense withheld the unclassified documents from Al Qosi's Tribunal.
The Department of Defense did not explain why it withheld the unclassified documents from Al Qosi's Tribunal.

Charged before military commissions

On February 24, 2004, he was named in documents for the first military commissions to be held for detainees.
The U.S. alleges that he joined al-Qaida in 1989 and worked as a driver and bodyguard for Osama bin Laden

Osama bin Laden

Osama bin Mohammed bin Awad bin Laden was the founder of the militant Islamist organization Al-Qaeda, the jihadist organization responsible for the September 11 attacks on the United States and numerous other mass-casualty attacks against civilian and military targets...

, as well as working as a quartermaster for al-Qaida. He is also alleged to have been the treasurer of a business which was an al-Qaida front.

He was indicted along with Ali Hamza Ahmed Sulayman al Bahlul. The indictment should allow them access to defense lawyers to prepare their defenses. He is charged with conspiracy to commit war crimes, including attacking civilians, murder, destruction of property and terrorism.

Lieutenant Colonel

Lieutenant colonel

Lieutenant colonel is a rank of commissioned officer in the armies and most marine forces and some air forces of the world, typically ranking above a major and below a colonel. The rank of lieutenant colonel is often shortened to simply "colonel" in conversation and in unofficial correspondence...

 Sharon Shaffer USAF was appointed Qosi's lawyer on February 6, 2004.

On August 27, 2004 Shaffer complained that she was not being provided with information she needed for her defense of Qosi, that Qosi had informed her that the quality of translation at his military commission was insufficient for him to understand what was happening.
She told the Tribunal that she had to resign as Qosi's attorney.

According to the Voice of America

Voice of America

Voice of America is the official external broadcast institution of the United States federal government. It is one of five civilian U.S. international broadcasters working under the umbrella of the Broadcasting Board of Governors . VOA provides a wide range of programming for broadcast on radio...

, Chief Prosecutor Colonel

Colonel

Colonel , abbreviated Col or COL, is a military rank of a senior commissioned officer. It or a corresponding rank exists in most armies and in many air forces; the naval equivalent rank is generally "Captain". It is also used in some police forces and other paramilitary rank structures...

 Robert L. Swann

Robert L. Swann (military lawyer)

Robert L. Swann is an American lawyer and retired Army colonel. He is currently the lead prosecutor on the cases of Khalid Sheik Muhammed and Mr...

 assured the commission that:

"...all resources will be devoted to obtaining the most accurate translations possible."

On November 9, 2004 legal action against Qosi was suspended,
US District Court Justice James Robertson

James Robertson (judge)

James Robertson is a United States federal judge serving on the United States District Court for the District of Columbia.Born in Cleveland, Ohio, Robertson graduated from Western Reserve Academy in Hudson, Ohio, and received a B.A. from Princeton University in 1959. He served in the United States...

 had ruled, in Hamdan v. Rumsfeld

Hamdan v. Rumsfeld

Hamdan v. Rumsfeld, 548 U.S. 557 , is a case in which the Supreme Court of the United States held that military commissions set up by the Bush administration to try detainees at Guantanamo Bay lack "the power to proceed because its structures and procedures violate both the Uniform Code of Military...

, that the military commissions violated International agreements to which the United States was a signatory. This ruling applied to all four of the detainees who had been charged by the military commission.

On July 15, 2005 a three judge appeal panel over-turned Robertson's ruling, setting the commissions back in motion.

On November 7, 2005 the US Supreme Court announced that they would be reviewing Hamdan v. Rumsfeld.

Qosi's case was stayed, pending the outcome of Hamdan v. Rumsfeld.

In Hamdan v. Rumsfeld

Hamdan v. Rumsfeld

Hamdan v. Rumsfeld, 548 U.S. 557 , is a case in which the Supreme Court of the United States held that military commissions set up by the Bush administration to try detainees at Guantanamo Bay lack "the power to proceed because its structures and procedures violate both the Uniform Code of Military...

, in July 2006, the Supreme Court of the United States

Supreme Court of the United States

The Supreme Court of the United States is the highest court in the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all state and federal courts, and original jurisdiction over a small range of cases...

ruled that the Bush

George W. Bush

George Walker Bush is an American politician who served as the 43rd President of the United States, from 2001 to 2009. Before that, he was the 46th Governor of Texas, having served from 1995 to 2000....

 Presidency lacked the constitutional authority

United States Constitution

The Constitution of the United States is the supreme law of the United States of America. It is the framework for the organization of the United States government and for the relationship of the federal government with the states, citizens, and all people within the United States.The first three...

 to set up the military commissions. Only Congress had the authority to set up military commissions. Congress subsequently passed the Military Commissions Act of 2006

Military Commissions Act of 2006

The United States Military Commissions Act of 2006, also known as HR-6166, was an Act of Congress signed by President George W. Bush on October 17, 2006. Drafted in the wake of the Supreme Court's decision on Hamdan v...

. But,

On February 9, 2008 Ibrahim Ahmed Mahmoud Al Qosi and Ali Hamza Suleiman Al Bahlul were charged before the Congressionally authorized Guantanamo military commissions authorized by the Military Commissions Act of 2006

Military Commissions Act of 2006

The United States Military Commissions Act of 2006, also known as HR-6166, was an Act of Congress signed by President George W. Bush on October 17, 2006. Drafted in the wake of the Supreme Court's decision on Hamdan v...

.

Phoning home

On May 22, 2008 Lieutenant Colonel

Lieutenant colonel

Lieutenant colonel is a rank of commissioned officer in the armies and most marine forces and some air forces of the world, typically ranking above a major and below a colonel. The rank of lieutenant colonel is often shortened to simply "colonel" in conversation and in unofficial correspondence...

 Nancy Paul, the Presiding Officer

Presiding Officer (Guantanamo Military Commissions)

The United States of America has charged Guantanamo captives before "Military Commissions", each presided over by a Presiding Officer.The Presiding Officer were initially to serve as the first among equals on bodies were the commission members served the roles similar to both judge and jury.In the...

 of his Commission ordered, that Ibrahim al Qosi be permitted his first phone call home.
He has declined to leave his cell to meet with Commander

Commander

Commander is a naval rank which is also sometimes used as a military title depending on the individual customs of a given military service. Commander is also used as a rank or title in some organizations outside of the armed forces, particularly in police and law enforcement.-Commander as a naval...

 Suzanne Lachelier

Suzanne Lachelier

Suzanne Lachelier is an American lawyer and commander in the United States Navy.Lachelier lived in France, in Orgeval, until 1983. She is fluent in French...

 his assigned legal counsel, and the Camp's security rules do not permit her going to his cell to talk to him—so they have never discussed his case.
During a preliminary hearing Ibrahim Al Qosi told Paul he does not want to be represented by an American lawyer.
He said that he had been unable to hire the lawyer of his choice because he had been isolated in Guantanamo, and had been unable to contact his family.

Later that day Commander

Commander

Commander is a naval rank which is also sometimes used as a military title depending on the individual customs of a given military service. Commander is also used as a rank or title in some organizations outside of the armed forces, particularly in police and law enforcement.-Commander as a naval...

 Pauline Storum

Pauline Storum

Pauline Storum is an officer in the United States Navy, who has specialized in Public Affairs.In the Spring of 2008 Storum was rotated to be the deputy commander ofJoint Task Force Guantanamo's Public Affairs Office.-Ibrahim Al Qosi's call home:...

, a Guantanamo spokesman, reported that the call had been completed, and that he had spoken with his family for an hour.

On May 23, 2008 Storum sent an apology by e-mail to reporters to retract her claim the phone call had been completed.

I misspoke when I confirmed that al Qosi's call was complete. In clarifying the current status of the detainee phone program, I misunderstood the information I was given, and inaccurately conveyed that al Qosi's call was completed. I apologize for the error.

Ibrahim Al Qosi's appointed counsel, Suzanne Lachelier, told
Carol Rosenberg

Carol Rosenberg

Carol Rosenberg is a senior journalist, currently with the McClatchy News Service.Rosenberg works at the Miami Herald, which has provided extensive coverage of the operation of the Guantanamo Bay detention camps, in Cuba.-Biography:...

, of the Miami Herald, that she was surprised to learn, through press reports, that the call had been completed. She said she had only begun to initiate the co-ordination with the Red Cross to arrange for his family to be set up to receive the call when she learned the call had already been completed. According to Rosenberg:

The original statement Thursday struck some observers as extraordinary -- for both its speed and the coordination between the separate bureaucracies of the prison camp and the war court.

The Department of Defense

United States Department of Defense

The United States Department of Defense is the U.S...

 had until July 1, 2008 to arrange the phone call.

July 2009 hearing

On July 15, 2009 Al Qosi had his first hearing in 2009.
According to Carol Rosenberg

Carol Rosenberg

Carol Rosenberg is a senior journalist, currently with the McClatchy News Service.Rosenberg works at the Miami Herald, which has provided extensive coverage of the operation of the Guantanamo Bay detention camps, in Cuba.-Biography:...

, writing in the Lakeland Ledger, the electronic audio management equipment the court had been supplied with in 2008 initially failed to function properly.
Rosenberg reported that al Qosi's defense team was concerned that the Prosecution was imposing improper delays, and noted they told the Presiding Officer,

Continuance

The Barack Obama

Barack Obama

Barack Hussein Obama II is the 44th and current President of the United States. He is the first African American to hold the office. Obama previously served as a United States Senator from Illinois, from January 2005 until he resigned following his victory in the 2008 presidential election.Born in...

 Presidency was granted a continuance on October 21, 2009.
The military commissions for five other captives have been granted continuances, until November 16, 2009.
Ibrahim al Qosi did not attend this hearing.

New charges rejected, status determination scheduled

On December 3, 2009, Paul ruled that the charges against Al Qosi should be limited to crimes he was alleged to have committed in Afghanistan.
She ruled that crimes he was alleged to have committed when al Qaeda was based in Sudan were beyond the mandate of the military commission system.

Carol Rosenberg

Carol Rosenberg

Carol Rosenberg is a senior journalist, currently with the McClatchy News Service.Rosenberg works at the Miami Herald, which has provided extensive coverage of the operation of the Guantanamo Bay detention camps, in Cuba.-Biography:...

, writing in the Miami Herald, reported that Paul scheduled hearings for January 6, 2010, to determine whether Al Qosi met the eligibility criteria laid out in the Military Commissions Act of 2006

Military Commissions Act of 2006

The United States Military Commissions Act of 2006, also known as HR-6166, was an Act of Congress signed by President George W. Bush on October 17, 2006. Drafted in the wake of the Supreme Court's decision on Hamdan v...

.
Rosenberg described Paul as the first Presiding Officer of a Military Commission to address changes the US Congress set in place in the Military Commissions Act of 2009

Military Commissions Act of 2009

The United States House of Representatives passed a bill, known as the Military Commissions Act of 2009, which amended the Military Commissions Act of 2006.Formally, it is Title XVIII of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2010 ....

.

Andrea Prasow, a senior counsel with Human Rights Watch

Human Rights Watch

Human Rights Watch is an international non-governmental organization that conducts research and advocacy on human rights. Its headquarters are in New York City and it has offices in Berlin, Beirut, Brussels, Chicago, Geneva, Johannesburg, London, Los Angeles, Moscow, Paris, San Francisco, Tokyo,...

, was critical of Paul for proceeding with the Commission, even though the rules of procedure hadn't been drafted.

Guilty Plea

On July 7, 2010, Al Qosi entered a guilty plea under a plea bargain deal, the details of which have not been publicly released, and his sentencing was set for August 9, 2010. On August 11, 2010, a military jury at Guantanamo recommended that al-Qosi serve 14 years in prison.

External links

• Bin Laden’s cook is moved to isolation in Gitmo October 10, 2010
• Human Rights First blog: Military Commissions
• Human Rights First; The Case of Ibrahim Ahmed Mahmoud al Qosi, Sudan
• Former bin Laden cook reaches secret sentencing deal with U.S. government The Washington Post
• Bin Laden Cook Accepts Plea Deal at Guantánamo Trial Andy Worthington
• Sentencing of detainee stalls at Guantanamo The Washington Post