Friday, November 21, 2008



Guantanamo: freedom for the Algerian Six?

One of the worst abuses in the war on terror is the case of "Algerian six". A group of Algerian-born Bosnian citizens, they were accused of plotting to blow up the US embassy in Sarajevo. The Bosnian courts ruled that there was no evidence against them, and that they should be released - but the US government, unwilling to accept the rule of law or little things like evidence, monstered the Bosnians into illegaly turning them over. They were then rendered to the US gulag in Guantanamo Bay, where they have languished ever since.

Now, a US judge has ordered five of the men freed, saying that there is no legal basis for their imprisonment. It's a victory for justice and human rights, and a defeat for the madness of the Bush Administration. The only question is whether the US government can finally admit it was wrong about these men, or whether it will appeal in another attempt to keep them imprisoned without charges, evidence, or just cause.